


The New Kid

by theHunter_and_theNinja



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1980s, Alternate Universe - No Zombie Apocalypse, Canonical Child Abuse, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Period-Typical Homophobia, Sad with a Happy Ending, Teen!Daryl Dixon, Teen!Paul Rovia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-10
Updated: 2019-12-27
Packaged: 2020-10-13 20:35:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 40,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20588693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theHunter_and_theNinja/pseuds/theHunter_and_theNinja
Summary: Daryl is forced to work with the new kid, Paul Rovia, in a group project assigned by their teacher. The two click immediately and soon find themselves edging towards something forbidden. Daryl finds himself torn between protecting Paul from his father by breaking his heart and risking everything for a shot at happiness.





	1. The New Kid

Daryl groaned as he listened to his teacher announce yet another group work project. He hated group projects as they normally involved him having to intact with people. He much preferred to work on his own as talking to and getting along with other people wasn’t exactly his strong suit. The only saving grace was that the partners were going to be assigned instead of a free-for-all. While a lot of students were upset by this, Daryl was relieved because he’d be spared the embarrassment of the teacher still having to assign him a partner when nobody wants to willingly work with him.

It’s no secret around the school that he is dirt poor and that his brother is a drug dealer. Both of those things means that people normally go out of their way to avoid interacting with him. It’s almost like he has the plague or something, like interacting with him will make the other person poor, too. People talked about how he only owned about four different shirts and two pairs of ripped, stained jeans. He was often bullied whenever he wore the same shirt twice in the same week. To avoid this, he often stole a shirt from his brother, but the over-sized solution was hardly any better in the eyes of his peers.

“Daryl Dixon,” the teacher called out, “and Paul Rovia.”

Daryl blinked, Paul Rovia? He’d never heard of this person before. He must be new to the school which Daryl hoped meant he wasn’t going to be as judgmental as most of the other students. Daryl waited patiently for the teacher to assign the rest of the pairs while glancing around trying to identify who this Paul Rovia was. Daryl’s seat, however, wasn’t in the last row and it was difficult to turn around without making his search super obvious to everyone. He resigned himself to the awkward waiting that would follow the teacher’s announcements as he waited for his partner to show up and introduce himself.

Just a few seconds after the teacher was done with his announcements, he felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned and was greeted by the prettiest blue eyes he’d ever seen. The boy’s long, brown hair was pulled up into a bun on the back of his head with only a few strands hanging free. He had on a black leather jacket with multiple zipper pockets in various places. Underneath he wore a black v-neck with the name “Misfits” and a white skull on it. His jeans were a dark gray and had rips all over, but not the kinds of rips Daryl’s jeans had. These ones looked nice, like they were designed to have them there. They rode low on his hips, allowing just a hint of his white underwear to peek out over the top. The last thing Daryl noticed were his tall black combat boots laced up with white string.

Daryl swallowed nervously as he tried to act normally and not embarrass himself in front of the newcomer.

“Hey,” the stranger said, “I’m Paul. I’m guessing you’re Daryl Dixon?”

“Um, yeah,” he managed to get out.

“Cool...” Paul mumbled awkwardly. 

They just stayed there for a couple seconds before Daryl finally brought himself back to reality.

“Oh, do you want to sit?” he said motioning to the empty chair next to him.

“Thanks,” Paul said as he sat.

The air around the was tense and Daryl worried that Paul could somehow detect that he was attracted to him. Daryl knew that he was gay, but he hadn’t really allowed himself to accept it. He knew that if his father or brother ever found out, they’d kill him and bury his body in the woods behind their house. Gay was not something he was allowed to be as a Dixon. They weren’t a well respected family, but his father still, for some fucking reason, cared about how people viewed them.

Luckily, they didn’t have to sit in that awkward silence for very long. Their teacher started speaking again to explain the project. It was a writing project in which they needed to craft an essay detailing the life and impact of a great American author. Daryl rolled his eyes when he said that. Daryl liked to read, but a lot of the authors considered to be “great American authors” by English teachers such as his, he found to be extremely stuffy and boring. He had no interest in reading the works of some high and mighty scholar who used big words and confusing sentence structure just because they could.

He could hear Paul next to him grumble his distaste for the project under his breath. At least he wasn’t the only one in this group who wasn’t happy with the subject matter of the essay. 

“I have provided a list of acceptable authors for you to choose from,” their teacher announced as he passed the list to everyone, “These are the only authors about whom I will accept an essay. I suggest that you all arrange a time to meet up with your partner before leaving today. Class dismissed.”

Daryl took the paper from the girl sitting across the aisle from him quickly glancing at the names. The list included authors like Robert Frost, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and William Faulkner, but no female or black authors were present on the list. Daryl sighed heavily as he glanced over the list again to confirm that and was disappointed, but not surprised, to see that he was correct. Most of the men in this town were racist and sexist, so his English teacher excluding them from his list of approved authors wasn’t at all shocking.

“Oh come on,” he heard Paul groan, “No Emily Dickinson, Mary Shelley, or Harriet Stow?”

“You must be really new here,” Daryl mused.

“Yeah, so?”

“Those three people would never make the list of acceptable authors by most of the men in this town. All three are women and one is black.”

“What do you think?” Paul challenged him.

Daryl looked over at his partner. He could see the hardness in his eyes as he asked him that question. It was obvious that he was trying to determine what kind of man he was. Paul, just based on the way that he dressed, was most likely more liberal than most of the people in this town.

“I think they’re better authors than any of the people on this list, but I also don’t think it’s worth getting detention over when I already know our teacher isn’t going to change his mind,” Daryl responded coolly.

His response seemed to satisfy Paul as his guard dropped a little and the coldness left his gaze.

“Good,” Paul continued on like nothing had happened, “Meet at your house later tonight?”

“What?!” Daryl yelped, “Why not your place?”

Nobody ever wanted to come to his house to work on anything. He lived in a rundown trailer on the outskirts of town, the most dangerous area to be in. Drug dealers and all manners of criminal filth lived and worked in that area.

“Well, I don’t think we’d get a lot done in the group home I live in. There’s about twenty kids living there right now and absolutely zero privacy,” Paul explained.

“Oh...” Daryl drawled as he processed that information.

That explained why Paul was so new and nobody had really mentioned it. He was an orphan and new addition to the massive group home in town. Daryl had met a few of the kids from there in the school and all of them were equally quiet and closed off. Paul was actually the most talkative of the bunch that he’d ever met.

“Let’s just go to the library in town. If we decide we need to go back to my place, we can,” Daryl tried to compromise with him.

“Sounds good to me. We need to gather some information on whomever we’re doing anyway,” Paul said standing up.

“What time do you think you’ll get there?” Daryl asked standing up himself.

“Oh, I was going to go over now. I like to keep out of the group home as much as I can.”

Daryl snorted softly at the coincidence, he’d been planning on just going there now too. It was a long walk back to his house so only making that trip once tonight sounded nice.

“So was I,” he admitted, “It’s a long walk back to my place and I’d rather not have to go home and come back again today.”

Paul chuckled at Daryl’s confession, a sound that was practically music to Daryl’s ears. He’d only just heard it, but he desperately wanted to hear it again.

“Well then, let’s just go now,” Paul smiled at him, heading towards the door.

“Yeah, that would probably be best,” Daryl agreed and followed Paul out of the school.

* * *

They’d been at the library for a long while when Paul’s stomach unfortunately interrupted them. 

“Hungry?” Daryl asked him laughing lightly.

“Yeah,” he said, glancing at his watch, “but it looks like I won’t be eating tonight. Dinner at the group home was more than an hour ago.”

Daryl felt bad that Paul was going to have to go to bed hungry tonight knowing the pain of an empty stomach all too well. He shifted nervously in his seat. It was almost 7 pm and the Library would be closing soon. He knew his father normally left for the local bar around this time and wouldn’t be back until late if he came home tonight at all since it was Friday. Sometimes his father would leave Friday night and not reappear until late Sunday evening.

“I got some meat I can cook up back at my house if you’re interested,” Daryl offered quietly, ducking his head slightly waiting for the harsh rejection he was sure he was about to hear.

“That sounds nice,” Paul smiled at him instead, “Thank you, Daryl.”

Daryl gave him a half smile as he stared at him in shock. He couldn’t believe that this boy was at all interested in coming to his house for dinner. Daryl wondered if it was solely because he offered him food and not because he actually wanted to be with him. He refused to allow him to get his hopes up that Paul could become a real friend.

The two spent the next half hour gathering up and checking out materials that they could use to write their essay. Daryl had Paul put them all under his name because he couldn’t guarantee their safety at his house. His father had a bad habit of using whatever was around to beat him sometimes including books, telephone cords, and cooking utensils. He remembered how embarrassed he’d been when he’d had to return a book with a broken spine because his father had used it to hit him before moving onto his belt.

They left the library just as the sun was beginning to set. It’s a fifteen minute walk back to his house from the library, but Paul doesn’t seem to mind. He actually looked happy to not have to go back to the group home just yet.

“Why do you hate the group home so much?” Daryl asked him on their way home.

He hoped Paul wouldn’t be upset by his personal question.

Paul shrugged his shoulders, “It’s just too crowded for my taste. Everyone is in everyone’s space all the time. All I want is some privacy to be able to be myself.”

“I guess it would be kinda hard to relax when you’re surrounded by a bunch of other people. It’s why I like hunting on my own so much.”

“You hunt?” he gawked at Daryl in disbelief.

“Yeah, I like to hunt with my crossbow in the woods behind my pa’s trailer.”

“Isn’t that illegal?”

“Yeah,” Daryl admitted kicking a rock on the ground in front of him, “Why? Are ya going to call the cops on me?”

“As long as you don’t call the cops on me,” Paul threw him a mischievous look.

Daryl furrowed his eyebrows, “Why would I do that?”

“It’s hard to find a place to smoke pot at home and it’s too risky to light up at school. I was hoping you’d let me smoke a bit while I was at your place,” Paul admitted.

Daryl blinked at Paul admission about just randomly having drugs on him right now.

“Not if you’re willing to share a little,” Daryl said half joking.

Daryl didn’t like most drugs because of what they do to people, but a little weed here and there never hurt anybody.

“Deal,” Paul agreed immediately.

Daryl stared at him, “Seriously? You’re willing to share? My brother never let me have any of his.”

Paul laughed lightly, “Well, you did offer to cook me dinner so it’s only right that I offer you something in return and weed is all I’ve got.”

Daryl chuckled at Paul’s response, “Alright, I hope you like deer burgers.”

Paul paused his walk for half a second, “I’m sorry, what kind of burger?”

Daryl just started laughing at Paul shocked reaction.

“You’re going to cook up deer meat?” Paul asked him.

“Yeah,” Daryl said still laughing lightly, “It’s fresh too. I just shot it last week.”

“What!?” Paul yelped.

Daryl couldn’t help but laugh harder and soon enough Paul joined him. Daryl really liked hanging out with Paul. So much so that he wasn’t looking forward to this project being over. He liked having an excuse to be with the guy. When Paul smiled at Daryl he thought he could see something else in his eyes, but he couldn’t figure out what it was. All Daryl knew was that Paul smile was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

_ “Fuck,” _ Daryl thought to himself, _ “I think I’m falling for this guy.” _


	2. Deer Patties and Pot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Paul and Daryl get high and find themselves revealing more about themselves than they intended to,

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: brief use of homophobic slur

“Daryl, this burger is amazing,” Paul praised him as he enjoyed the dinner that Daryl had prepared for them.

Daryl made a deer meat burger with some lettuce, tomatoes, and mayo. He also had some potatoes that he’d cut up, covered in olive oil, salt, and pepper and thrown in the oven. It was the best meal Paul had gotten in a long while. He was used to having things that the head of the group home could make in large quantities for cheap. That pretty much meant pasta, pizza, and eggs almost every day at some point.

Daryl blushed and ducked his head at the praise, not used to the positive attention. Right now, Daryl was just glad his father hadn’t come back yet. He was constantly listening for the sound of his father rusty truck pulling into the driveway. He really wasn’t in the mood to have his drunken father come barging in and ruining any chance of a friendship that he had with Paul.

Daryl finished his burger before Paul and, without thinking about it, sucked the last drops of flavor off his fingers. He glanced up at Paul just as he stuck his thumb into his mouth only to see Paul staring at him. Daryl pulled his finger from his mouth and looked away in shame. He couldn’t believe that he’d forgotten his manners like that in front of Paul. He glanced back at Paul to find him staring at his mouth, eyes dark with something Daryl didn’t recognize.

“Dinner was delicious,” Paul said not taking his eyes of Daryl’s mouth, “but the weed in my bag is calling my name.”

Daryl swallowed nervously, but nodded anyway. He stood up and cleared away their plates, placing them in the sink to clean later. If his father asked why the two plates, he’d lie and say Merle stopped by for dinner. Hopefully, his father would be wasted enough to believe it. Paul walked over to his backpack and pulled out a small bag of weed that he’d already rolled into blunts. There wasn’t a ton, but there was enough for them both to spend the next couple hours happily floating on air.

“Where do you want to?” Paul asked holding the bag up.

“The back porch would be the best. My Pa will kill me if he smells weed in the house. He thinks it smells horrible.”

“Fair enough. I prefer smoking outside anyway.”

Paul follow Daryl outside to his rickety back porch. There were holes in the floor and the roof and it had a musty, earthy smell to it that wasn’t wholly unpleasant. There wasn’t any furniture outside so Daryl sat down on the stairs, motioning for Paul to join him. Paul didn’t hesitate to sit down next to him and pull out one of the blunts. He pulled his lighter out of his pocket flicking it on and lighting the end of the blunt. He put it to his lips and took a long pull of the drug, sighing contentedly as he breathed the smoke out.

Daryl just stared at Paul as he took the first drag of the blunt. With his hair up, dark ripped jeans, and biker jacket he was extremely attractive. The moonlight was just bright enough to light up his face and when he breathed out the smoke it was like dragon breath. He was so caught up in the image in front of him, be almost missed Paul handing the blunt over to him. It has been a long time since he smoked pot, cigarettes on the other hand was something he enjoyed daily.

He took a long drag of the blunt, letting the smoke sit in his lungs for a second before breathing out.

“Damn,” he whispered, “That shit’s good.”

“Right? It’s some of the best weed I’ve had. I’ll say this about being in nowhere Georgia, they know how to grow their weed,” Paul said taking the blunt back.

They passed the blunt back and forth until it was gone and they were both comfortably riding high. Paul moaned contentedly as he leaned back against the railing on the side of the stairs, flicking the end of the blunt onto the ground in front of them. He used the heel of his boot to crush the butt, making sure it was out before fully relaxing.

“I missed this,” Daryl admitted.

“Hmm,” Paul hummed lazily, debating with himself internally about pulling out a second one.

“Feels good to relax for once,” Daryl murmured.

Paul turned his head to look at him, “You’re home, surely you relax here all the time?”

Daryl shook his head sadly, “Nah, not much space for relaxing around here.”

“Why not?”

Daryl hesitated to answer Paul’s unintentionally prying question. He didn’t want to color Paul’s view of him by admitting that his father was a violent, abusive man. He wanted Paul to like him, not pity him. But he also didn’t want to lie to him about anything. He hated people who lied to him, so how could he lie to Paul?

“My father is not a kind man,” Daryl spoke sadly, “Whenever he’s around, relaxing is not something that’s allowed to happen.”

Paul looked like he was trying to wake up, “Does your father hurt you?”

“My father hurts everyone,” Daryl tried to skirt around the question.

Paul sighed deeply, “I meant: does he hit you?”

Daryl swallowed hard, he was way too high to be having a conversation like this. Actually, now that he’s thinking about it, it’s probably because he’s high that Paul’s getting any answers from him right now about this stuff.

“Yeah, but only when I deserve it.”

“Oh?” Paul looked extremely skeptical, “like when?”

Daryl shrugged, not knowing what to say. He wanted to come up with some believable lie to feed this guy, but his head was too clouded with smoke to really think straight.

“Does he beat you when he runs out of beer?” Paul started, “When he can’t get laid? When the weather isn’t just right?”

Daryl hung his head in shame, Paul was reading him like an open book without even trying. The guy was as high as he was and he was still getting all of this. Paul could see that he’d struck a chord in Daryl with his words. He wanted to reach out and comfort him, but he wasn’t sure how Daryl would react.

“Why does my father hate me?” Daryl whispered, not really addressing Paul as much as he was addressing the overall universe.

“People like him, those who beat their family members, are normally just very hateful people who have no explanation as to why they do what they do,” Paul answered.

“My father is one of the most hateful men in this town,” Daryl revealed, spitting angrily, “He believes himself superior to both women and blacks, but more than anything else, he hates homosexuals. _ Faggot _might just be his favorite insult to use towards me or anyone who isn’t acting within his expectations of masculinity.”

Paul winced at the slur, he hated that word so much and he knew that hearing it all the time must hurt Daryl deeply. Paul could tell from the second they’d met back in the school that this boy was like him, gay. He also knew that Daryl liked him, he’d seen how Daryl has been looking at him all night. The first thing Daryl had done when they met was look him over, something Paul had rather enjoyed. He’d been sitting behind him for almost two weeks admiring his bulging arm muscles and broad shoulders and daydreaming about kissing him. He hadn’t known until today that Daryl was gay and even now, he wasn’t sure Daryl would be willing to act on any of those feelings considering his upbringing.

Paul hesitated for only a few moments, contemplating his next move, before sitting up and scooting closer to Daryl on the porch. He didn’t want to pretend with Daryl about who he was and how he felt. Plus, the weed in his system seemed to be making him a little bolder than normal. He usually hides his sexuality to the best of his ability, but tonight, sitting right next to his crush, he didn’t feel like hiding.

“I never could understand how people could be so hateful towards people different from them. I’m no different from anyone else,” Paul spoke cautiously, “I just love men instead of women.”

He could feel Daryl tense beside him, but Paul couldn’t work up the courage to look at him. He could feel Daryl’s eyes on him, but he wasn’t saying anything. Paul could feel the buzz lessening just a bit, so he reached for another blunt, lighting up and taking a long drag from it. He mainly just wanted a distraction from the awkward moment that he had created by coming out to Daryl.

The smoke clouding his mind once again gave him the courage to glance over at Daryl only to see him holding out his hand for the blunt. He watched as Daryl took a long drag from it, blowing the smoke out into the cool night air. Paul couldn’t help noticing how handsome Daryl was right now wearing only an old tank top and old, baggy jeans. His blue eyes catching in the moonlight, the smoke from the blunt curling up into the air. 

When Daryl looked at him, he could see a war going on behind his eyes. He blinked and he sat up, leaning close to Paul. Daryl brought the blunt back up to his lips and took a long drag, but this time he didn’t exhale it into the air. Instead he leaned further into Paul’s space and it didn’t take him more than a second to realize what Daryl wanted. He leaned in and let Daryl cover his lips with his own, shotgunning the smoke into his mouth.

Paul moaned at the feeling of Daryl’s lips against his own. He figured this was Daryl’s way of showing Paul who he was without forcing himself to go all the way and kiss him outright, at least, not yet. It was like Daryl was using shotgunning to ease himself into the idea that he was kissing another man.

Daryl had been terrified to do what he’d just done, but through the smoke in his head, he honestly couldn’t remember why he was so scared. All he knew was that he wanted to kiss Paul and so, he did. Paul took the blunt from him, taking a drag himself and shotgunning the smoke into Daryl’s mouth. They took turns doing this until the blunt was finished and they were both even higher than before.

Daryl dropped the blunt onto the ground and crushed it with his foot like Paul had done with the first one. They stared at each other for about thirty seconds before Paul leaned forward and kissed Daryl for real, without the cover of shotgunning smoke. Daryl wasn’t hesitant at all like Paul had thought he’d be and he wondered if it was the pot that was giving him more courage than he’d normally have. They kissed until they needed to break apart for air, but one look at Daryl told Paul that they weren’t anywhere near done.

Daryl leaned back in and captured Paul’s lips again, this time running his tongue across his bottom lip. Paul moaned into the kiss, happily opening his mouth to allow Daryl’s tongue entry. Their tongues battled for dominance, twisting and curling around each other as they kissed. Paul felt Daryl leaning in further, pushing him down flat against the wooden porch. His arms found a home underneath Paul with one cradling his head and the other slipping under his back from the side. Paul let himself relax under Daryl’s body, wrapping his arms around Daryl’s neck pulling him even closer.

Paul felt Daryl not knowing where to place his legs, so Paul parted his legs slightly to allow Daryl’s leg to rest in between them. Without meaning to, Daryl shifted his leg up pressing it against Paul’s hardening cock. He felt Daryl tense above him and he realized that this was moving way too fast. Daryl probably wasn’t ready for something like that, plus neither of them were exactly sober. With great difficulty, Paul pushed Daryl away from him.

Daryl whimpered at the loss of Paul against him and looked down at him in confusion.

“Did I do something wrong?” Daryl asked him looking away, wanting to shrink away from him in embarrassment.

“Whoa! You did nothing wrong,” Paul grabbed him, pulling his face back to him, “It was all amazing, I just think we’re moving kinda fast. Plus, we’re both not really sober.”

Daryl nodded in agreement, he wasn’t sure that he was ready for anything more than this. Daryl got up off of Paul, but he didn’t want to be apart from him entirely. So, instead of pushing himself too far, he pulled Paul against him and leaned back against the stair railing.

Paul sighed contentedly as he rested his head against Daryl’s chest, his body resting fully against him. Daryl’s arms wrapped around him, pulling him snug against him. He didn’t want to leave this embrace to walk back to his cold, unwelcoming room back at the group home. He glanced up at Daryl as rested against the wooden railing.

“So what does this make us?” Paul asked quietly.

“I’m not sure,” Daryl admitted, “I never even thought I’d be able to have anything like this. If my Pa ever finds out...”

Paul could hear the fear in Daryl’s voice as he mentioned his father.

“We don’t have to tell anybody about us,” Paul suggested, “We could be like, secret boyfriends.”

“Secret boyfriends?” Daryl mused quietly.

He kind of liked the idea of them being boyfriends even if they couldn’t be out. He’d never allowed himself to dream about having one, but now there was a boy laying on his lap who’d he’d just shared his first kiss with and who wanted to be his boyfriend.

“Yeah,” Paul continued, “We’d be friends to everyone else, only we would know that we’re actually more than that.”

“I’d like that,” Daryl whispered, taking Paul’s hand.

“Me too,” Paul said snuggling up against his new boyfriend’s chest, closing his eyes in contentment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated. <3


	3. Interruptions

“So, Daryl,” Paul asked Daryl during lunch, “Where do you want to  _ study _ tonight?”

Daryl smirked as he listened to Paul’s question. They’ve been boyfriends, although secretly, for almost a month now. They hadn’t done anything beyond kissing, but Daryl was appreciated Paul moving at his pace. They often used the guise of studying to talk openly about planning times and places to meet up and hang out.

“I know a nice area out back of my place. My Pa’s going out drinking tonight, so it should be easy to sneak out into the woods,” Daryl suggested.

“Studying under the stars,” Paul mused, “Sounds nice and peaceful.”

“Laying under the stars, watching the reflection of the sky ripple in the lake,” Daryl whispered lowly after making sure there wasn’t anyone too close, “Listening to the crickets chirp in the tall grass while we rest comfortably on a blanket under the cool night air.

Paul repressed a shudder at the low, gravely nature of Daryl voice as he described where they were meeting tonight. He wasn’t normally this eloquent with words, but talking about nature tended to bring out Daryl’s more romantic side.

“I can’t wait,” Paul breathed back.

He wanted to just pull Daryl in and kiss him but he couldn’t, not here. He could tell that Daryl wanted it too, but both of them understood the danger they’d be putting themselves in if they came out. Daryl’s abusive father would definetly kill him and Paul would probably get sent to conversion therapy by the head of the group home. The kiss would be glorious in the moment, but the fallout of it would tear them apart.

Daryl cleared his throat and stepped back, breaking the spell between them. They hadn’t been standing close to begin with, but the added distance served to remind them about their position. Paul wished they didn’t have to hide more than anything, maybe someday in the future they wouldn’t, but right now he could only dream about it. Their conversation was ended abruptly the the sound of a bell ringing signalling the end of their lunch period.

“I’ll see you after school,” Paul said.

“Meet me by the flagpole?” Daryl asked.

“Always.”

* * *

Daryl waited patiently for Paul to join him at the flagpole so they could walk back to his place together. It was a risk when they did this because there was always a chance of his father still being there, but they loved walking together. He felt someone tap him on his shoulder and he turned only to see his brother. 

“Merle?” Daryl gasped in shock, “What are you doing here.”

“What? A man can’t come visit his brother?”

Daryl winced, he was happy to see Merle, but not today. His eye caught Paul hanging back a ways pretending to be waiting on someone else. He knew Paul was confused by what was happening, but he didn’t dare approach without knowing who it was.

“No, it’s just...” Daryl trailed off not knowing what to say.

“It’s just what?” Merle asked him suspiciously, crossing his arms.

“I was hoping to hang out with a friend tonight,” Daryl admitted hoping Merle would back off.

“You don’t want to spend some time with your brother?”

“I do, but maybe some other time?” Daryl tried desperately throwing a subtle look over at Paul.

Merle rolled his eyes, “Come on boy, you can hang out with whoever your friend is whenever ya like. I’m going to be real busy the rest of the month.”

“Yeah, with your gang,” Daryl bit out annoyed at his brother’s assumption that he was going to drop everything just because he’d decided to show up.

Merle’s upper lip curled back in anger, “That  _ gang _ keeps the lights on in your house, boy.”

“Okay, but what happened when you get caught and go to jail?” Daryl reasoned, “Why can’t you just quit and get a real job?”

“Ain’t nobody going to hire a high school dropout. You know that.”

Daryl sighed deeply knowing he wasn’t going to win this argument.

“Can I at least tell my friend that we can’t hang out tonight?”

“Fine,” Merle grumbled, “I’ll be by the truck.”

As soon as Merle left, Daryl’s shoulders dropped and he felt utterly defeated. He hated that he let Merle dictate his life like this, forcing him to bend to his will whenever he decided to show up. He slowly made his way over to Paul who was waiting patiently for him

“What’s wrong?” Paul asked immediately standing up.

“That was my brother, he’s demanding that I spend the night with him. I didn’t know how to say no without looking suspicious,” Daryl revealed, hanging his head.

Paul was disappointed, but he understood that despite all Merle’s failings, Daryl still loved his brother deeply. Daryl had told him how Merle had often protected him from the worst of the beatings when they were younger. Daryl felt indebted to Merle because of it and so he let him push him around whenever Merle was in town.

“I’m sorry,” Daryl mumbled unable to meet Paul’s eyes.

Daryl had planned out a nice night for them both, but with his brother's sudden reappearance, all that planning was for nothing. The picnic he’d prepared for him and Paul was surely going to be eaten by Merle or his drunken father before the night was over. Daryl wanted to punch something, preferably his older brother, for losing this night with Paul.

“It’s okay,” Paul assured him, “I’ll see you at our usual hang out tomorrow.”   
Daryl smiled half-heartedly at his boyfriend, thankful that Paul wasn’t angry at him. He was especially happy that Paul still wanted to meet him tomorrow at the local bowling alley like they do every Saturday.

Paul slapped him on the shoulder and Daryl briefly covered his hand with his own. It’s a move that they’d seen enough straight men do that it wasn’t strange. It has become a way for them to say good-bye without outing themselves. It allowed them to touch each other without anyone figuring out that they’re more than friends.

“See you tomorrow,” Daryl confirmed before turning and leaving, his heart falling as he felt Paul’s hand slip from his shoulder.

* * *

Daryl couldn’t believe where he was right now. His brother’s version of “hanging out” was to drag him out to a seedy bar where the owner didn’t care that he was underage. Merle ordered two beers at the bar and handed one to Daryl. It wasn’t the first time he’d ever drank, but it was the first time he’d ever drank in public. The beer tasted cheap, but not entirely bad.

“Why did you drag me here Merle?” Daryl asked taking another sip of his beer.

“You’re 18 now right?”

“Yeah, so?” Daryl was deeply confused as to why his age mattered because, right now, he was already drinking underage at a local bar.

“Figured it was about time you got yourself some pussy,” Merle said nonchalantly.

Daryl choked on his beer causing him to nearly cough up a lung as he tried to force air back into his body.

“Whoa there boy!” Merle laughed at him, “You can’t die before you get your dick wet.”

“What makes you think I want that?” Daryl spluttered.

Merle furrowed his eyebrows, throwing an incredulous look at his younger brother, “You’re a man, aren’t ya?”

“Yeah.”

“Then getting some pussy should be on top of your priority list.”

“How are you so sure I haven’t, you know, already?” Daryl tried desperately.

“Because I know you baby brother,” Merle drawled sipping his own beer, “You’ve never even had the courage to so much as look at a woman, let alone fuck one.”

Daryl swallowed nervously, he felt trapped right now. He couldn’t tell Merle that the real reason he’s never looked at a woman wasn’t because he was too shy, but because he liked to look at men instead. His mind was racing wondering how he was going to get out of this one. He really wished he’d pushed to hang out with Paul tonight instead of his brother.

“Maybe I’d rather wait,” he said slowly searching for the right words, “until I can do it with somebody I love.”

Merle rolled his eyes, “Now you listen to me. Ain’t nobody ever going to care about you except me, baby brother. We’re Dixons, we don’t get that happy, lovey-dovey ending.”

Daryl felt Merle’s words punch a hole deep in his chest, hurting much more than his father’s fists ever had. Maybe Paul really didn’t care about him. How could he? He was just some stupid redneck who he’d been forced to work with one day by their teacher. The minute Paul goes off to college, would he forget all about Daryl who wasn’t destined for anything beyond a job at the local mechanics shop?

“How about that one over there,” Merle suggested motioning towards a skinny blonde woman leaning against the bar.

Daryl could tell the woman was more than a little drunk. It would be wrong of him to try anything with her. She wasn’t sober, so she couldn’t properly consent to anything. That, plus the other glaring problem of her gender, made him want to jump up and run away from this place as fast as he could.

“Nah,” Daryl just shrugged, “Not my type.”

Merle ran his tongue over his teeth, “What about her isn’t your type?”

“She’s drunk,” Daryl stated firmly, “I don’t want to take advantage of her.”

Merle actually laughed at him for that one.

“You don’t like that she’s not sober?” he cackled, bending over in his seat, “Come on baby brother. Do you honestly think that any sober woman would choose to be with you?”

Daryl bit his lip and hung his head. He felt like he was going to cry, something Merle would definitely not approve of. He swallowed hard and he fought back the hurt in his chest from his brother’s words. He needed to get out of here right now.

“I gotta piss,” Daryl mumbled standing up.

“You go do that,” Merle said distractedly, “While you’re doing that, I’ll round us up some dates.”

Daryl nodded numbly, knowing that he wasn’t planning on coming back from the bathroom. He walked towards the back of the bar, moving right past the bathroom and going out the back entrance. He paused to lean heavily against the back of the building and collect his thoughts. He could feel cold tears tracking down his face.

He needed to see Paul, right now. He needed his kind words and soft touches to reassure him that he wasn’t trash. He prayed that Merle wasn’t right about Paul not actually caring about him, but he needed to find out tonight. He had to believe that Paul truly cared for him, but if he didn’t, his brother’s words might just kill him.

Having made up his mind, Daryl pushed off from the building and walked off into the night making a beeline for the group home.

* * *

He walked for thirty minutes making his way back into town. The whole time stewing in his brother’s words becoming less and less confident about Paul actually caring about him. It was close to eight o’clock pm and the sun had long since disappeared. He hoped the head of the group home would let him see Paul despite it being so late at night. 

As he walked up to the group home, he stopped upon seeing a figure perched on the roof smoking something. It took him a minute to see who it was in the dark, but the long hair and ripped jeans gave him away.

“Paul!” Daryl whisper yelled from the ground.

He saw the figure pause, his hand halfway to his mouth, and look down.

“Daryl?” called down softly.

“Can I join you?”

“Uh, yeah,” Paul sounded extremely confused, “You can climb up using those crates stacked up over there.”

Daryl found the crates his boyfriend had pointed to and carefully made his way onto the roof. He let his hunting tactics take over as he moved silently across the roof to Paul. He gently lowered himself down next to his boyfriend, breathing in the familiar scent of cigarette smoke. He could just make out Paul’s concerned look as he sat down.

“You got another one of those things?” Daryl asked him quietly.

“Oh, sure,” Paul said reaching into his jacket pocket pulling out a box of cigarettes.

He handed one to Daryl along with his lighter. Daryl took them and immediately lit the cigarette taking a long pull from it. He felt himself relax as he breathed the nicotine in and blew the smoke up into the air.

“Daryl,” Paul prodded him, “what are you doing here?”

Daryl swallowed nervously, his long trek here with only his brother’s words for company had fully destroyed any and all confidence he had to ask Paul anything.

“Babe?” Paul tried again, “You’re scaring me.”

Daryl could feel tears reforming in his eyes, a few tracking down his cheeks. He took a deep breath and turned his head so that Paul could see his face. Paul could see the tears glinting in the moonlight and he was immediately on high alert. He’d never seen Daryl cry in all the time he’d known him. He’d see him post beating with bloody cuts all over his body more than once, but he’d never seen him cry.

“Oh my god,” Paul whispered caressing Daryl’s face, “What happened?”

Daryl just shook his head lightly. Paul felt Daryl lean in and he responded by leaning in as well. Daryl kissed his boyfriend desperately, seeking comfort in his arms. Paul could feel the coldness of Daryl’s tears against his cheeks as they kissed. As much as he liked the kissing, Paul needed to know what was bothering his boyfriend so badly that it brought him to tears. Paul pulled away from Daryl with great difficulty as Daryl chased after him.

“Babe, as much as I enjoy kissing you, I need to know what’s wrong,” Paul explained.

Daryl sighed deeply pushing away from Paul. He said nothing as they both finished their cigarettes. They should be wrapped up with each other on a soft blanket on the shore of a lake right now kissing languidly under the stars, but instead they were hiding on the hard roof of the group home smoking cigarettes to calm their nerves.

“Did something happen with your brother?” Paul tried again.

Daryl knew that he couldn’t avoid talking to his boyfriend any longer so he crushed the cigarette butt under his foot and sighed.

“He tried... he tried to force me to sleep with a woman,” he whispered.

Paul’s eyes widened in shock, “What?!?”

“He took me to this bar that allows underage drinking and he told me he was there to help me get some, you know...” he trailed off.

“Is that why you were crying? Because he tried to pressure you into having sex with someone you’re not attracted to?”

“No,” Daryl shook his head, feeling more tears slide down his face, “Am I just a phase for you?”

Paul furrowed his eyebrows, “Babe, you know I’m gay. This isn’t...”

“Not that part,” Daryl cut him off, “I meant being with me specifically. Am I just something you’re willing to settle for until you can move to someplace where you can find better gay men?”

“What? No! You’re not some second hand option to me,” Paul assured him pulling Daryl close to him, “I love you.”

Daryl couldn’t help but burst into tears against his boyfriend’s chest at his admission that he loves him. He threw his arms around him, holding onto Paul for dear life at this point. Paul just held his boyfriend and let him ride this out. Whatever his brother had told him had severely hurt Daryl, maybe more than his father ever had.

Daryl sniffled against Paul’s chest as his tears finally came to a stop.

“Merle pointed out a woman at the bar he thought I would like, but she was drunk already. I told him I didn’t like that she was drunk and I didn’t want to take advantage of her. He laughed at me and said...” Daryl trailed off.

“He said what, babe?” Paul pushed gently.

“He asked if I really believed that anyone sober would choose to be with me,” he whimpered.

Paul let his head fall back towards the sky as he took in those words. His brother, who claimed to love Daryl unconditionally, had thrown a horribly damaging blow at Daryl’s already fragile confidence. Paul could feel tears welling up in his eyes as he processed the words that had been said to his wonderful boyfriend.

“He also said that nobody would ever care about me except him,” Daryl choked out between the tears tracking down his face.

“Listen to me,” Paul said firmly, lifting Daryl’s face to look at him fully, “Your brother is an asshole. I will _ always _ choose you, no matter what. You are my everything and I love you.”

Daryl searched his face for any evidence that he was lying. He must not have found any as he surged up and kissed Paul hard on the mouth. Paul squeaked at the surprise attack, but quickly returned the kiss. Daryl reached up to tangle his fingers in Paul’s long hair, his other hand planted firmly on the roof to steady them. Paul threw both his arms around Daryl's broad shoulders and focused on conveying all his love and admiration for his boyfriend through that kiss.

Daryl moaned into the kiss, pulling his boyfriend as close to him as he could. He needed to be close to him right now. He felt Paul’s tongue asking for permission to enter and he happily let him in. They kissed under the stars for a long time, Paul trying to show Daryl how much he meant to him and Daryl seeking comfort in his boyfriend’s warm embrace.

When they finally broke apart, Daryl spoke softly, “I love you too.”

Paul smiled at him and went to say something when a yell from inside the house cut him off.

“Rovia! Where are you?” a woman yelled angrily.

“Shit,” Paul groaned, “That would be my guardian telling me it’s time for lights out. I’m sorry babe.”

“It’s okay, I should head back home now anyway,” Daryl smiled sadly.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, of course,” Daryl confirmed. 

They exchanged a few more passionate kisses before Paul climbed back in the window he’d crawled out of earlier.

“Rovia!” Daryl heard through the still open window, “What did I tell you about climbing out onto the roof?”

Daryl chuckled when he heard Paul's response, “To not fall off?”

He heard the woman groan in frustration and slam the door to Paul’s bedroom.

Daryl took great care in lowering himself down onto the crates he’d used to climb up and walking off in the direction of his house which he hoped was empty. He really didn’t want to have to explain to Merle why he’d run off.


	4. Secret Dates

It’s been a week since his and Paul’s aborted lakeside date and Daryl was determined for it to actually happen this week. He’d spent the morning prepping a similar picnic to the one he’d made last week and hiding it in the woods inside an airtight container. This time there were no elements that needed to be refrigerated. Daryl invited Paul to the lake once again during lunch and Paul was very excited to finally see this beautiful spot.

The biggest problem with today was that his father was going to be home. He’d spent all his money drinking last week, so he couldn’t go out to the bar this weekend. Daryl also knew this meant that he needed to avoid his father at all costs in order to avoid getting the shit beaten out of him. That’s one of the biggest reasons why he’d hidden the food in the woods instead of in his house. He wasn’t exactly planning on going back home at all this weekend.

“You ready to go?” Daryl asked his boyfriend when he came up to him at the flagpole.

“Hell yeah,” Paul smiled brightly, “Even if Merle shows up this week, I’m not going to let him stop us.”

Daryl returned Paul’s smile as he pushed off the pole and started walking towards his house. Paul quickly fell in step with him. He wanted to reach out and take Daryl’s hand, but he couldn’t let anyone see that. He’d have to wait until they were safely in the woods and away from any prying eyes.

Daryl hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Merle since he ran away from him at the bar and he honestly couldn’t decide if that was good or bad. He was thankful that he hasn’t had to come up with a creative lie to cover for him, but he couldn’t help but worry that it was going to bite him in the ass. His biggest fear was Merle tracking him down while he was with Paul and openly being himself. He couldn’t think of anything worse than Merle finding him when he’s got his tongue down another boy’s throat.

Daryl could see his house coming into view over the hill, his father’s truck sitting in the drive. Daryl grabbed the sleeve of Paul’s jacket, tugging on it to get him to follow him off the road.

“Daryl,” Paul asked confused, “where are we going?”

“My Pa’s at home, so we can’t go back to my house. He ran out of money to buy alcohol so he’s really dangerous right now.”

Paul swallowed nervously, he could feel dread settling in his stomach as he thought about Daryl going back into that house later tonight. Paul wanted to know before they went any further so that he didn’t ruin the romantic atmosphere of the lake with his worries. So, he stopped dead in his tracks causing Daryl’s hand to slip from his jacket.

“What happened when you go home tonight?” Paul asked him.

Daryl sighed, he’d known that Paul was going to be worried about him despite how many times he’d spent the weekend hiding in the woods before.

“I’m not going back home this weekend. I’m going to be camping out in the woods this weekend,” Daryl revealed.

“What?”

“Yeah, going to do some hunting while camping out under the stars and cooking on an open fire. I’ve done it loads of times before, I’ll be fine.”

Paul wasn’t convinced, but there really wasn’t a better option for Daryl. He didn’t like the idea of his boyfriend out in the woods all by himself for days on end, but he really didn’t like the idea of his father beating the shit out of him because he couldn’t get drunk.

Daryl took his hand and pulled Paul deeper into the woods. Paul shook his head, brushing the thoughts aside so that he could really enjoy his date with Daryl. He made his way carefully behind Daryl who looked at home under the trees. He seemed to know where every upturned root and rock were placed. It was obvious that he spent a lot of time out here hiding from his violent father.

He led Paul around the back of his father’s trailer to a hollow tree. Paul could just barely make out a large man pacing back and forth in the trailer from in between the trees. Daryl pulled a clear plastic tub out from the brush and opened it, pulling out a picnic basket and a blanket. He reclosed the container and pushed it back into the brush. He stood up, took Paul’s hand and turned to lead him deeper into the woods. It wasn’t until the trees began to thin and they came out into a large clearing that Daryl stopped.

Before them was a sizable lake surrounded by fallen trees and grassy banks. There was a small stream running through the area preventing the lake water from becoming stagnant, keeping the water clear and beautiful. The opening in the trees allowed for the sun to shine down into the clearing. It was an oasis in the middle of Georgia that only they knew about.

Paul watched as Daryl moved away from him and unfolded the red and black plaid blanket to lay it on the ground. Paul’s heart melted when he saw that Daryl had actually made a honest-to-god picnic for them to enjoy. He’d had a few boyfriends before, but none of them had treated him as nicely as Daryl was. Most of his past boyfriends were only interested in having sex, something that Paul hadn’t been ready for. One of them had even tried to force Paul into having sex, but he’d shut that down quick with his karate training.

Paul walked across the ground to join Daryl who was now sitting on the blanket, waiting for him to join him. Paul sat down right next to his boyfriend, leaning in to give him a kiss. Daryl returned the kiss eagerly, twisting his fingers in Paul’s hair. They kissed languidly for a while enjoying their first real kiss in almost two weeks. They hadn’t been able to sneak away alone since the Friday before Merle’s interruption. They’d kissed briefly in the men’s restroom of the bowling alley last Saturday, but kissing inside a smelly bathroom while standing next to a urinal just wasn’t the same.

Paul could feel himself becoming a little too excited, so he pushed Daryl away.

“What did you bring for dinner?” he breathed heavily.

Daryl blinked a few times trying to bring himself back to the present. Paul snorted at his boyfriend’s confusion. It made him happy to know that Daryl was so into their activity that he’d honestly forgotten that they were out on a picnic. Daryl shook his head and sat up, pulling up the lid on the basket.

“We’ve got homemade deer jerky, fresh fruit, pretzels, chips, and finally, some store bought sugar cookies for dessert,” Daryl listed off as he pulled each item out, “I know it isn’t much...”

“It’s perfect,” Paul assured him kissing him on the cheek.

Daryl blushed at Paul’s words, but didn’g turn away. He was becoming more used to Paul positive attention and compliments. They’d become even more frequent since Merle’s comments about him last week. It was like Paul was single handedly trying to destroy all the self-doubt he’d ever had. 

Paul didn’t hesitate to dig into the deer jerky, licking his lips at the salty taste.

“Did you make this?” Paul asked.

“Yeah, Merle taught me how to back when we were kids.”

“It’s really good, babe.”

“Thanks,” Daryl said drawing shapes on the blanket.

They ate in silence, listening to the sounds of the forest around them. The chirping of birds in the trees creating a peaceful atmosphere around them. Paul finished his dinner and leaned against the strong shoulders of his boyfriend. Daryl’s arm wrapped around his back and his hand was now rubbing up and down his side. Paul turned his head up to look at Daryl. He looked so content and relaxed right now, even more than when they would smoke pot together.

Daryl gazed out at the lake, the sun glinting on the small ripples in the water. He could feel Paul against his side and he was the happiest he’d ever been. Being surrounded by his two greatest loves, nature and Paul, made him feel like he was floating on air.

“I wish this would never end,” Paul whispered, not wanting to ruin the peaceful atmosphere around them.

“Me too,” Daryl murmured.

Paul thought about it for a minute before realizing something.

“Maybe it doesn’t have to,” Paul mused.

“What do you mean?”

“What if I stayed with you this weekend instead of going back to the group home?”

Daryl’s eyes widened in shock at Paul suggestion.

“That sounds wonderful and all, but what’ll happen when you don’t go back to the group home?”

Paul shrugged his shoulders, “I’m not sure, honestly. Every place is different and it often depends on who’s missing. I’m considered a ‘flight risk’ because of how many places I’ve run from in the past. So, they might call the cops on me tonight or not for a couple of days, just to make sure I’m really gone.”

Daryl raised his eyebrows, “You don’t seem very worried about that.”

“I’m not. I turn 18 in three weeks, what are they going to do to me?”

“They could send you away, couldn’t they?”

“Technically yes, but they won’t. Nowhere else will take me because of my past history of running away,” Paul admitted.

“What happens when you turn 18?”

“Well, I can choose to leave the group home and start my own life, or I can choose to finish out the school year before moving out.”

Daryl’s gaze fell.

“You’re leaving in three weeks?” he whispered sadly.

Paul chuckled softly, “No silly, I’m going to choose to stay until we both graduate in May. Then maybe we can figure out where to go together. I’m not leaving you behind, not ever.”

Comforted by his words, Daryl nuzzled his nose against the side of Paul’s head as if thanking him for not abandoning him.

“You want to stay here for the weekend? Spend it with me in the forest?” Daryl asked hopefully.

He was so used to being out here on his own, he was looking forward to the idea of spending all that downtime with Paul. It got lonely when he was out here sometimes, no matter how much he liked the silence.

“Yeah, it sounds like the best weekend ever.”

Daryl ran his fingers through Paul’s hair and kissed him.

“I’m glad,” Daryl said against his lips.

“Me too,” Paul whispered pulling back, “I love seeing you out here, in your true element.”

“I feel so at home out here. I’m better out here. I’ve always been better out here,” Daryl explained, “Whenever it got to be too much at home, I would run off into the woods and hide until it was safe to go back. That’s how I found this place and kind of made it my own. There’s a small outcropping of rocks on the other side of those trees. That’s where I sleep because it provides adequate cover from rain and wind. I stashed some weapons there too so that I don’t have to go back to the trailer.”

“You’re pretty much self-sufficient out here then? For everything except water.”

“Nah, I have a pot I gather the water in and then boil it.”

“Very impressive,” Paul admitted staring at his boyfriend in wonder, “If the world ever ends, I’m sticking with you.”

Daryl huffed out a short laugh, “That’s good because if the world ever went to shit, protecting you would be my top priority.”

The two watched the sunset come over the lake in relative silence. The changing of the colors casting them each in swaths of orange and pink light. They spent most of the time kissing softly, cuddling on the blanket, and munching on sugar cookies. It wasn’t until the sun had completely disappeared that Daryl started to pack up what remained of the picnic.

Daryl led him back into the woods to where they were going to be sleeping for the next couple of days. Already standing there was a rather good structure in the shape of a tent made out of large pieces of wood. Paul watched as Daryl pulled a waterproof tarp out from behind some rocks, brush it off, and rolled it out onto the ground.

Daryl grabbed the airtight plastic container that was sitting in the tent already and pulled out a couple blankets, two camping pillows, and a crossbow. Paul bit his lip as he watched his boyfriend skillfully check to make sure the crossbow was still in good condition. His arm muscles bulging as he lifted it up into the air.

“See something you like?” Daryl teased, smirking at him.

“Only my extremely sexy hunter boyfriend, of course,” Paul said walking over to him.

“Stop,” Daryl mumbled, ducking his head and continuing with his work.

Paul sat down on the tarp and was surprised that it wasn’t as uncomfortable as he’d thought it was going to be. The ground was surprisingly soft with no hard rocks giving him a hard time.

“I dug up all the rocks on the ground and used dirt and grass to make it softer than normal,” Daryl explained when he saw Paul feeling the ground.

“Smart,” Paul nods, “It’s hard to get a good night's sleep when there are rocks digging into your back.”

Daryl grabbed the pillows and paused, glancing over at Paul.

“How do you want to do this?” Daryl asked shyly guesturing with the pillows.

Paul smiled softly at his nervous boyfriend who was trying to figure out how close or far apart he wanted them to sleep. Paul took the pillows from him and laid them side-by-side on the ground.

“How’s that?” Paul asked him.

Daryl relaxed and grinned at his boyfriend. He pulled the blankets out and moved to lay down on the ground. Paul scooted over to him and laid down facing his boyfriend. He ran his fingers through Daryl’s short hair and moved over so that their faces were just inches apart. Daryl pushed himself up onto one arm and leaned over Paul. Paul moved one of his hands to behind Daryl’s head, holding onto his neck as Daryl leaned in.

Their lips met in a passionate kiss, Daryl’s free arm coming to wrap around Paul grasping the small of his back, pulling him closer. Paul couldn’t help but wrap his top leg around Daryl’s legs. Without hesitation, Daryl’s leg moved in between his now parted legs. They couldn’t get close enough to each other. Paul moved his arm to completely wrap around his boyfriend’s neck eliminating all space between them.

Paul moaned into the kiss, sliding his other arm up and around Daryl’s back. He felt Daryl flinch as his hand ran up his back. Paul furrowed his eyebrows pulling away.

“Babe, are you okay?” Paul asked, a concerned look on his face.

“Yeah, I just don’t really like it when people touch my back,” Daryl admitted.

“It is because of your father?”

“Yeah,” he whispered, “I’ve got a lot of scars on my back. I don’t want you to feel them and freak out.”

Paul felt his heart breaking for his boyfriend. He hates how his father treats him and wishes that he could take Daryl away from him, but until they graduated there was nowhere for them to really go. They needed high school diplomas in order to get decent jobs and Paul wanted to go to college at some point. It broke his heart, but they had to stay and endure this life for just a little while longer.

“I love you, Daryl,” Paul told him, “No scars are ever going to change that.”

Daryl didn’t say anything back to him, he just kissed him. It was like he was trying to convey his appreciation for Paul through the kiss since words weren’t always his strong suit. His fingers were twisting in Paul’s long hair while Paul ran his fingers through Daryl short hair. Paul could feel himself growing hard against Daryl’s leg, but he could also feel Daryl’s growing erection pressing into his thigh.

“Babe,” Paul said between kisses, “If you don’t want to go further, we should stop now because if we don’t, I won’t be able to stop.”

Daryl didn’t say anything, he just pushed his leg harder against Paul’s clothed cock as he continued to kiss him. Paul moaned as his leg started rubbing back and forth over him. Paul practically whimpered when Daryl’s hand disappeared from his back and moved to the button on his jeans. Paul removed one of his own arms from around Daryl’s neck and moved it to his boyfriend’s pants and started fiddling with his belt.

It was really hard for Paul to concentrate on getting into Daryl’s pants when he felt Daryl’s hand open his pants and reach inside to grasp his cock. Paul yelped into Daryl’s mouth as the flesh of his cock met the cold night air. Daryl started to jerk him off using his precome to slick the length of his cock. Paul finally managed to get Daryl’s jeans open and pulled out his cock. Daryl groaned into Paul’s mouth when he felt Paul touch him for the first time.

An idea popped into Paul’s head, so he shifted his body under Daryl to rub their cocks together. Daryl broke the kiss and was now just panting into Paul’s mouth. Paul removed Daryl’s hand from his cock and took both of them into his own hand. He used their precome to help him jerk them off. They continued to breathe heavily into each other’s mouths, their moans mixing beautifully with the natural sounds of the forest.

Paul could feel himself getting close and he could hear Daryl getting close too. Daryl dropped his head onto Paul’s shoulder as he comes, groaning into Paul’s hair. Paul himself closed his eyes and let his head fall back onto the pillow beneath him as he came just a few seconds later. He felt their come splatter over his clothed chest. He would have to wash the shirt in the lake before going back to the group home, but he honestly couldn’t bring himself to care right now.

They both took a couple seconds to reassemble their clothing and Paul pulled off his shirt. He shivered in the cold night air, but he didn’t want the drying come to get all over their blankets while they slept. They didn’t exactly have any place to wash them or get new ones. Daryl caught him shivering and rolled over and pulled one of his own shirts out of his bag, handing it to Paul.

Paul kissed him softly, accepting the shirt from his boyfriend. Daryl wore shirts much bigger than Paul which meant that the shirt easily slid off his shoulder exposing it to the cold night air. He saw Daryl swallow, staring at him. Paul chuckled at his boyfriend’s reaction to him wearing his clothes.

“Like what you see?” he teased him like Daryl had done to him earlier.

Daryl just smiled at him, kissed his cheek and laid down on the ground. He pulled Paul down next to him, spooning him from behind, arms wrapped around Paul’s waist. Paul sighed in contentment and snuggled back against his boyfriend’s chest.

“You should wear my clothes more often,” Daryl murmured from behind Paul.

Paul chuckled closing his eyes, “We do that again and maybe I will.”

“I’d like that,” Daryl whispered.

“Me too, but not tonight. I think we’ve done enough for today.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, “We’ve got to be up early to hunt tomorrow anyway.”

Paul’s eyes snapped open, “Wait?  _ We _ are hunting?”

“Yeah, I’m going to teach you to hunt. That way, if anything ever happens, I will know that you can provide for yourself,” Daryl explained.

“How proactively protective of you,” Paul mused.

“Shut up,” Daryl grumbles.

Paul chuckles, but doesn’t tease his poor boyfriend anymore. He looked up at the sky, the stars shining above them, crickets chirping in the tall grass near the lake, the cool air surrounding them, and his boyfriend’s warm body pressed up against his back. He felt more at peace now that he ever had before, he could understand why Daryl loved being out here so much. He listened to the crickets chirping and Daryl’s soft snores as he fell asleep feeling utterly safe and cared for.


	5. Hunting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a FYI, I know nothing about hunting, so if there are any inaccuracies, I apologize.

The sun was just peeking out over the horizon when Daryl woke up. He was confused by the long strands of hair on his face, tickling his nose. He also could feel something fairly heavy laying on one of his arms. He blinked his eyes opened only to see Paul laying next to him. That’s when he remembered that Paul had decided to stay with him this weekend.

He gulped when he remembered that Paul was wearing his shirt and felt his morning wood twitch at the sight in his arms. Paul’s hair was all over the place from both sleep and the light breeze. One of his arms was laid flat out on the ground in front of him while the other one was tucked up under his pillow. His mouth was open slightly as he made soft little snores when he breathed in. It was probably the cutest his boyfriend has ever been.

However, his arm was very much asleep and he needed it awake to hunt. He couldn’t even feel his fingers at this point. He carefully tried to pull his arm out from under his sleeping boyfriend, but all it did was cause Paul to grumble in his sleep and roll closer to him. He groaned and wondered if this was normal for couples who shared a bed. One person waking up comfortably surrounded by the other while the other woke up trapped with one arm asleep under their partner.

Daryl used his free arm to hold Paul still while he slid his arm out from under him. Paul groaned in annoyance, but allowed Daryl to get his arm back this time. Daryl double checked to make sure his boyfriend was still asleep before crawling out of bed. He made sure to tuck Paul back in so that he wouldn’t get cold. Daryl quietly made his way over to where he’d left his crossbow the night before. In the dim morning light, he started going over it to make sure that everything was exactly the way he’d left it.

He counted his arrows and made sure his bowie knife was still sharp, using a blade sharpener to guarantee that it was. He got up and made his way to the edge of the surrounding forest to decide which direction he wanted to start in today, checking for any trails that animals may have left in the night. He noticed a few broken twigs and parted brush that signaled that a large animal, most likely a deer, had gone through there. He checked the ground for prints and, sure enough, there were deer prints in the soft earth.

He heard a moan behind him and he turned to see Paul rubbing his eyes and blinking at his surroundings. He chuckled as he watched him try to remember why the hell he was sleeping in the forest on a tarp. By this time the sun had almost completely risen, bathing the small clearing in a soft golden glow. When he saw the recognition on his face, Daryl started making his way back over to him.

“Good morning,” Daryl called over to him, “I was starting to think you weren’t going to wake up before I went hunting.”

Paul threw him a half-hearted glare, “You wouldn’t have left me.”

“I’d have left a note telling you where I was,” Daryl teased, sitting down next to Paul.

Paul sighed deeply, “We got anything for breakfast?”

“Not really,” Daryl admitted, he didn’t normally bring any more food than what he could catch, “Unless you want some leftover sugar cookies.”

“Fuck it, sure,” Paul said sitting up, “It’s better than my grumbling stomach scaring all your game away.”

Daryl chuckled, but handed over the sugar cookies from last night. Paul didn’t a ton of them, just two or three, enough to stop his stomach from groaning with hunger while they hunted.

“What are we hunting today?” Paul asked.

“I think a deer came through here during the night,” Daryl explained munching on a cookie himself, “I want to try to get it. Their meat gets me a lot at the local butcher’s shop.”

Paul blinked, “Isn’t it illegal for him to buy meat from you because you shot it illegally?”

“Yeah, but no cop around here is complaining about having access to fresh deer chops every couple weeks.”

“Do you think they know what’s going on?”

Daryl shrugged, “Maybe, but I don’t think they’d say anything even if they did. Like I said, people around here love fresh meat enough to not ask where it came from.”

Paul shook his head in disbelief, “What do you use the money for?”

“Nothing really. I’ve been saving it up as best I can,” Daryl admitted, “Hopefully it’ll help me get out of my Pa’s house as soon as I graduate.”

“I should probably try to get a job so that I can help us save up.”

Daryl looked over at his boyfriend, “You were being serious about moving in together when we graduate?”

“Of course, it’s the best possible option for the both of us.”

Daryl nodded, “Well, the grocery store in town is hiring. I saw a sign reading ‘help wanted’ there just a few days ago. You should check it out.”

Paul nodded, “I think I will after school on Monday. It would suck if it cut into our date nights, though.”

“Yeah, but if you’re busy at the grocers, then I can spend more time hunting, which means more meat, which means more money from the butcher.”

“I can’t believe we’re already planning our future together,” Paul murmured, brushing crumbs off his borrowed shirt.

“Me neither, yet here we are,” Daryl agreed.

Daryl glanced up at the sky to see the sun had risen enough to illuminate the forest around them. There were almost no clouds in the sky, which meant it was going to be a good day for hunting.

“Get up,” Daryl urged his boyfriend, “It’s time to go. I don’t want that deer going much further before I’m on its trail.”

* * *

Paul did his best to walk as silent as his boyfriend, but he wasn’t used to walking on leaves and twigs. He could sneak around town as easily as a ninja, but walking silently in the woods was a much different experience. Every time he thought he’d found someplace safe to walk he was crunching leaves or snapping a twig. He could tell Daryl was doing his best not to get annoyed with him, but he’d already scared off two squirrels and a rabbit with the noise he was making.

Finally, Daryl got fed up with it and decided to teach Paul how to walk silently through the forest. He knew that he needed to or they were never going to catch anything. He pointed out to Paul that he was only stepping where there was live grass or dirt, avoiding leaves and fallen twigs. He also showed him how he bent his knees to control his impact with the ground better. Paul watched his boyfriend’s step carefully matching him step for step.

Once Paul had started to learn how to walk quieter, he taught him what to look for to decipher animal tracks and paths in the surrounding green. Snapped branches and parted brush meant something big had passed through while and shifted dirt and broken nuts could indicate there’s a rabbit or squirrel nearby. He wanted to teach him how to use the crossbow, but they needed to focus on catching dinner right now. The sun was already moving over their heads and all they’d caught so far was a single squirrel that was fairly plump from storing up fat for the coming winter.

Paul almost tripped when Daryl suddenly stopped and held up his fist. At first, Paul had no idea what was going on and then he saw it. Standing maybe 15 feet away from them was a huge buck with gigantic antlers and everything. It was all he could do to keep from gasping in awe. He honestly couldn’t believe that they’d actually found it with all the noise he’d made earlier in the day.

Paul watched as Daryl motioned for him to stay here and started slowly moving towards the animal to get a better shot. He watched as Daryl silently crept closer, positioning himself to hit the animal in the head. He needed to hunt to survive, but he didn’t want the animals he hunted to suffer and the best way to ensure that was to take them down with the first shot.

Daryl crouched just out of the deer’s line of sight and readied his crossbow. He breathed in slowly and then pushed the air out as he let the arrow fly. It struck the deer right in the head and it collapsed with a loud thud. Daryl waited for any more movement from the animal or surrounding forest before getting up and walking over to it.

He glanced down at his kill nodding his head. It was a more than decently sized buck that he’s caught. It looked like it could weigh 150 pounds or more thanks to the coming winter. He immediately started dressing the animal, getting it ready to be hauled back to their camp. He would have to put it up in a tree somewhere to keep predators away from it before he could call the butcher up to come pick up the fresh meat.

He heard Paul approaching from behind him, coming over to see what was going on.

“Whoa,” Paul breathed, “That thing is huge. How on Earth are we going to get it back to our camp?”

“By dragging it, of course,” Daryl replied.

“Dragging it?” Paul gawked, “That thing looks like it weighs a ton.”

“Nah,” Daryl shook his head, “Only about 150 lbs, 170 lbs at the absolute most.”

“Ha ha,” Paul said rolling his eyes, “Is this our dinner?”

“It might be if I can’t catch any rabbits or another squirrel or two on our way back. I’d prefer to keep it intact, the butcher likes them better that way.”

Paul nodded.

“I’ll try to be more quiet this time,” he promised.

Paul watched patiently as Daryl removed his arrow from the head of the deer and cleaned it off with the rag hanging out of his back pocket. The rag was stained from previous hunts making it a half-pink, half-gray cloth. Without hesitation, Daryl stuffed the now bloody rag back into his pocket and returned the arrow to his bow.

“Come on, help me grab it,” Daryl said motioning for his boyfriend to grab hold of the animal with him.

“What do you do when you get one this big while you’re alone?” Paul asked groaning under the weight of the animal.

“Suffer,” Daryl teased him, grabbing tight to the animal and pulling.

On the way back, Daryl managed to catch two rabbits that would compliment their plump squirrel nicely. Paul started wondering if it was going to be an all meat dinner until Daryl stopped them to pick some berries. Daryl didn’t hesitate to pop a few of them into his mouth as they finished gathering. Paul copied him, eating a few of the mystery berries. He still couldn’t recognize the taste, but they weren’t entirely bad.

“They’re elderberries,” Daryl explained, chuckling as he watched his boyfriend try to figure out what they were.

“Oh,” he replied, “I don’t think I’ve ever had those before.”

Daryl handed the bag of berries to Paul who slung them over his neck. The rest of the way back, Daryl did his best to take a majority of the weight of the buck so that their berries wouldn’t get crushed against Paul’s heaving chest. Paul groaned and cracked his back as soon as they made it back to their camp and dropped the deer.

“We’re not done yet,” Daryl said shaking his head, “We’ve got to get the rope from over there and haul this thing up into the tree.”

“Why?”

“So predators don’t come and steal my kill.”

“Ah,” Paul said looking around, “I would much prefer that all our hard work didn’t go to waste.”

Daryl set about tying the rope around the deer while Paul went about gathering firewood so that they could cook their dinner. By the time Daryl had the deer safely up in a tree, Paul had a nice fire going and was calmly munching on some elderberries, his combat boots resting by the edge of the tarp. Daryl grabbed the squirrel and two rabbits and skinned them, placing their meat on sticks and propping them up over the fire. He too removed his shoes as to not track dirt all over their makeshift bed.

“What do you do with the leftover animal skins?” Paul asked, watching Daryl turn the meat.

“The butcher buys them, too,” Daryl said, “He sells them to a friend of his who uses them to make stuff.”

Paul scrunched up his nose in mild disgust,“I don’t think I’d like having animal carcasses as decor in my house.”

Daryl three him a faux offended glance, “What? You saying I’m not allowed to mount any of my kills to our walls?”

“Hell no!” Paul screeched horrified, “It would be like hanging a mummy on our walls. I don’t want dead things in my house.”

Daryl couldn’t help but laugh at his boyfriend’s reaction.

“Don’t worry,” he chuckled, “I agree with you. I’ve never liked the idea of parading around what you’ve killed. I hunt for survival, not sport.”

“For survival?”

“Yeah, I hunt for the money and sometimes the meat itself. I save as much money as I can, but I do have to use some of it to buy groceries in town because my father wastes all our money on beer. I keep some of the meat to sell or eat in the winter. If I didn’t hunt, I’d starve,” Daryl admitted, throwing some berries into his mouth.

“That’s awful,” Paul whispered, “You shouldn’t have to do that.”

“I know. I wish I didn’t have to, but I do,” Daryl shrugged, “I’ll get through it.”

Silence reigned for a while as they watched the fire crack and pop as their meat was cooking. Paul hadn’t thought about how self-sufficient Daryl had to be compared to him. He didn’t have to hide out in the woods from an abusive father or worry about illegally catching his own food. Paul might be an orphan, but he had three meals a day back at the group home if he wanted them. Compared to Daryl, Paul honestly had a pretty privileged life right now.

Paul watched quietly as Daryl checked the meat and deemed it good enough to eat. He took the meat off the sticks and placed them on some paper plates he’s had stowed away here. He didn’t have any silverware though having never found the need for it. They had a small bucket that they’d filled with water before leaving this morning to wash their hands as best they could. Daryl admitted that he didn’t normally worry about that, but he didn’t want Paul to be grossed out.

The meat didn’t taste bad at all, though it wasn’t as good as what Daryl could make when he had access to an actual kitchen. Paul could cook a few basic things like grilled cheese and eggs, but no from scratch deer burgers or homemade jerky.

The juices from the meat were coating Daryl’s fingers and Paul was just waiting for Daryl to lick them like he sometimes does when he forgets Paul is here. Much to his disappointment, Daryl remembered his presence and, when he’d finished, went to wipe them off on his pants instead. Without thinking about it, Paul reached over and stopped him. Daryl glanced over at him with a confused look as Paul put his empty plate down and shifted closer to his boyfriend.

Paul hesitated only for a second before bringing Daryl fingers to his lips and licking the juices off himself. He glanced up at Daryl’s face to gauge his reaction only to see that his eyes had gone dark. Paul smirked in response and took one of Daryl’s fingers into his mouth. He repeated this with each one until all the leftover meat juices were gone. Paul then took his own fingers and gave them the same treatment. By the time he was done, Daryl’s eyes were almost black with desire.

Paul looked over at him innocently and it was like he’d cut the chain holding Daryl back. The man surged forward and captured his lips in a heated kiss. Paul moaned as he got the exact reaction from his boyfriend that he’d wanted. He wrapped his arms around Daryl’s shoulders and returned the kiss with equal fervor. Daryl bit and sucked at his lips forcing Paul’s mouth open. As soon as it was, Daryl’s tongue plunged into his mouth, wrapping his tongue around Paul’s.

Daryl pushed them down until Paul’s back hit the tarp underneath them. Daryl’s used his elbows and forearms to hover over Paul’s head, still kissing him. Paul opened his legs and wrapped his legs around Daryl’s waist. Daryl groaned low when he their clothed cocks pressing against each other. Paul shivered in pleasure at the sound and at the feeling of himself growing hard.

Paul decided to give an experiment roll of his hips against Daryl who just about choked on his tongue when he did. Daryl stopped kissing him on the mouth and instead moved onto his neck, licking and sucking from just under his ear down to the junction where his neck met his shoulder. Paul whimpered when Daryl started to rub against him, their hard cocks still separated by their jeans.

Paul felt Daryl shift above him, putting more weight on his right arm and moving his left. Paul wasn’t sure what Daryl had in mind until he felt a hand run over his jeans, fingers catching on every rip. The hand then ran up to his chest feeling his strong ab muscles flexing under his shirt. He felt Daryl tug at the hem of it, silently asking Paul to take it off.

Paul pushes Daryl off of him just enough so that he could sit up and take off his shirt. Daryl also took the opportunity to remove his shirt, much to Paul’s surprise. Paul shivered as his chest met the cold night air, but he was quickly surrounded by warmth again as Daryl reconnected their torsos. The feeling of their bare chests rubbing together was intoxicating, Daryl’s breath blowing against the nape of his neck. Paul pulled Daryl into a heated kiss, their tongues battling for dominance. 

Paul’s cock was becoming quite uncomfortable in his tight jeans. He desperately wanted to relieve the pressure, but he also didn’t want to let go of Daryl’s broad shoulders and short hair. He wished right now that he had a couple extra limbs at his disposal. He felt Daryl rock his groin against his causing Paul to moan loudly into Daryl’s mouth. The man didn’t stop, he just pressed harder, rolling his hips faster. Paul responded in kind, pushing up to meet every grind of Daryl’s hips.

Finally, the pain became too unbearable even clouded by the feeling of Daryl grinding against him. Paul took the hand from Daryl’s hair and shoved it between their bodies to get at his belt. He also didn’t want to cum in his pants since he only had the one pair of underwear with him. Daryl must’ve guessed at what he was doing because he lifted off of Paul just enough for him to get to his pants. Daryl used his free arm to undo his pants as well, breathing a sigh of relief that matched Paul’s when the pressure was released.

Daryl broke the kiss, staring down at Paul.

“How far do you want to take this?” he gasped softly, out of breath from the kissing.

“As far as you’re ready for,” Paul breathed back.

For emphasis he rolled his hips up, connecting their cocks again, this time them only being seperated by the thin material of their underwear. Daryl growled low, closing his eyes, at Paul’s actions. Daryl really didn’t want to stop to talk right now, but he knew it was important.

“I ain’t never done this before,” Daryl admitted, ducking his head in shame.

Paul grabbed his chin, pulling his face back towards him.

“Neither have I,” Paul revealed gazing into Daryl’s shocked face.

His admission seemed to have comforted Daryl, letting him know that he wasn’t alone in his inexperience.

“I want to, but I haven’t got any protection or nothing,” Daryl spoke sadly.

Paul could feel the heat radiating off of Daryl and the pressure of their hard cocks resting against each other between their legs. He really wanted this to be his first time. Laying on the soft ground under the stars with the only man he’s ever loved sounded like the perfect first time.

“We don’t technically need it,” Paul said cautiously, “We’re both virgins, so we know we’re both clean. And neither of us can get pregnant since we’re both men. It’s not really a necessity for us. All we technically need is lube.”

Paul watched as Daryl processed what he’d said. He could practically see the gears turning in Daryl’s head as the ran what Paul had said over and over in his brain.

“Huh, I guess that’s true,” Daryl mused, “I ain’t got any lube though. All I’ve got is the oil for my crossbow.”

“Is it scented?”

“No.”

“Then it should work,” Paul asummed, “It’s just oil after all.”

Daryl kissed Paul again before leaving their embrace to grab the oil. He checked quickly to make sure there weren’t any ingredients in it that wouldn’t hurt either one of them. He swallowed nervously realizing they hadn’t established who was going to be doing what. Daryl wanted to be with Paul in this intimate way, but he wasn’t sure he was ready to be vulnerable enough to allow himself to be the one penetrated.

“How do you want to do this?” Daryl asked shyly as he made his way back over to his boyfriend.

Paul smiled softly up at Daryl, the moonlight illuminating his wiry frame and sculpted muscles. He’d moved off the tarp and onto their blankets for some extra soft cushion.

“I want you inside me,” he whispered, parting his legs wider as an invitation.

Daryl gulped at the sight and he almost forgot how to breathe when Paul motioned with his pointer finger for Daryl to come join him. Daryl followed Paul’s wishes and knelt between his spread legs, gazing hungrily at his boyfriend’s half naked body. Paul chuckled at Daryl’s reaction to his blatant invitation.

“You can touch me, you know?” Paul teased him rocking his hips up into the air.

Daryl blushed deeply, but reached out to run his hands up Paul’s legs to his waist enjoying the spurts of flesh he felt between the torn fabric. His fingers curled around the top of Paul jeans and underwear. He glanced up at Paul to make sure he was okay with this. Paul nodded and lifted his hips just enough for Daryl to pull them off.

Paul’s hard cock popped out and stood proudly above his body, red and leaking precum. Daryl starred as he finished pulling Paul’s pants off, flinging them to the side somewhere. He made quick work of Paul’s socks before moving back up Paul’s legs so that his face was level with Paul’s cock. Paul’s cock was about half an inch longer than his own, but thinner. He was also circumcised, something Daryl hadn’t had done to him.

Paul wasn’t sure at first of what Daryl was planning on doing and gasped in surprise when he felt Daryl’s hands on his cock. Daryl gently started to jerk him, using precum to ease his way. Paul moaned at his boyfriend’s attention, bucking his hips into the touch. He was even more shocked when Daryl leaned forward to lick the head of his cock. 

Paul yelped at the feeling of Daryl’s warm, wet tongue on his shaft. It was like Daryl was feeling it out as he cautiously gave small licks all over Paul shaft before becoming bolder. He took the tip into his mouth and suck, pulling a strangled gasp from Paul. Daryl slowly worked his way down onto Paul’s cock not wanting to choke himself as that wouldn’t be at all attractive.

He went down on his as far as he dared, using his hand to jerk off whatever he couldn’t fit into his mouth. Daryl thought of all the things he’s seen in porn of heard his brother describe and put it to use. He hollowed his cheeks and sucked, continuing to listen to Paul’s moaning above him.

“Babe,” Paul struggled to get out, “if you want this to last, you’ve got to stop.”

Reluctantly, Daryl pulled off his boyfriend’s cock, giving it a few more pumps before leaving it alone. 

“I think,” came Paul’s strained voice, “that you have way too much clothing on.”

Daryl bit his lip at the comment, but moved to take off his jeans anyway. Paul has now been completely naked for some time, it was only fair he returned the favor. He could feel Paul’s eyes on him as he shimmied out of his pants, taking his underwear and socks off last. He couldn’t bring himself to meet Paul’s eyes, scared of seeing rejection or disgust in them like his brother had told him he would.

Instead, he felt gentle hands against his torso and he glanced up. Paul’s eyes were devouring him like he was a starving man and Daryl was a fresh piece of meat. Paul eyes stopped on Daryl’s cock, practically drooling at the sight while Daryl blushed deeply. Paul’s fingers traced down his chest and grasped his cock. He began to jerk him off just like Daryl had just done for him. 

Paul didn’t spend too much time doing that, however, as he wanted this encounter to last long enough to reach the desired end result: them making love under the stars. Daryl leaned forward over his boyfriend after Paul had let him go, but he stopped short of grabbing the oil.

“You good?” Paul asked him.

“Yeah, I just don’t know what to do next,” he whispered ashamed at his lack of knowledge.

“Well, before we can get on with the main event, you’ll need to prep me,” Paul explained, “You’re too big for me to take in dry.”

Daryl bit his lip nervously, “How do I know I won’t hurt you?”

Paul chuckled. Sometimes his boyfriend’s concern with his safety was so cute.

“You won’t,” Paul promised him, “Just start with one finger and take it slow. I’ll tell you if I need you to stop, okay?”

“Okay,” Daryl agreed teaching for the oil.

He made sure to coat his fingers thoroughly before reaching down to touch his boyfriend. He hesitantly ran his pointer finger over Paul’s opening at which he moaned in encouragement. Daryl experimented by pushing just the tip of his finger past Paul’s tight rim. Paul groaned low when his finger slipped in for the first time. Paul rocked his hips down onto the finger to get Daryl to push it in further. Daryl took the hit and obliged him, much to Paul’s joy.

The finger fully sheathed inside Paul made him feel good. It had felt weird at first, but now he was starting to enjoy the feeling of being filled. He could only wonder what it would be like when Daryl’s cock was in him. Daryl started thrusting the finger in and out while Paul met his movements with deliberate rolls of his hips.

“Give me another one,” Paul moaned reaching down to jerk his own cock.

“If you’re sure you’re ready,” Daryl agreed.

All Paul did was moan louder in response and Daryl took it as encouragement to go ahead. Daryl pulled his finger back out, but then reinserted it with a second one coming in beside it. It took a little bit longer to work them inside Paul’s body who growled a little at the stretch. 

“You good?” Daryl asked, checking on him.

“Yeah, only some minor discomfort,” Paul gasped, “It’s gone now.”

Daryl continued to thrust his fingers in and out at a steady pace. He was worried he wasn’t prepping him deep enough since he didn’t totally understand how this worked, so he pushed his fingers in a far as they would go and then up. Paul yelped in shock above him and Daryl panicked that he’d hurt him. He froze in his movements, going to pull his fingers back out when Paul stopped him.

“I swear to god, Daryl if you don’t do that again,” Paul threatened him.

Confused, Daryl did as he was told and repeated what he’d just done. This time Paul moaned loudly into the cool night air. The more Daryl rubbed at that spot, the higher pitched his boyfriend’s moans became.

“Please Daryl,” Paul whimpered, hands gripping the blanket beneath him, “I need you now.”

“Hold on,” Daryl chuckled, “I want to get one more finger into you. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t,” Paul tried even though he knew it was useless.

When it came to intimacy, Daryl tended to rather be more safe than sorry. Daryl pulled his fingers out and Paul whined at the loss. Daryl poured more oil on his three fingers before placing them back at Paul’s entrance.

“Tell me if it hurts,” he reminded Paul as he pushed forward.

Once all three fingers were fully sheathed inside Paul’s body, Daryl kept them still to give Paul time to adjust to them. He waited until he heard Paul moaning and felt him rocking his hips. Daryl scissored his fingers wanting to open his boyfriend up as much as possible. 

“Daryl,” Paul whined, “now, please.”

Seeing the desperation in Paul’s face, Daryl relented and pulled his fingers out. He oiled up his cock, probably using more than he needed to but he was still scared of hurting Paul. He leaned over to line himself up with Paul’s entrance and felt Paul’s legs come to wrap around his waist. He used his hand to guide his way to Paul’s entrance, his cock pushing against his boyfriend’s pink, oil-slicked rim.

“Please,” Paul whimpered, rocking his hips.

Daryl leaned down to kiss his boyfriend as he slowly began to push in. When the head of his cock finally pushed inside, Daryl growled at the pressure while Paul moaned at the stretch. Daryl waited patiently for Paul’s go ahead before pushing in further.

Daryl kept the pace slow and steady as he continued to push inside his boyfriend. When he was about halfway in, Paul yelped in pain causing him to stop cold in his tracks. Daryl noticed that Paul’s cock had fallen closer to half mast and he felt really guilty enjoying the feeling of being in Paul. He went to pull out, but Paul’s legs stopped him.

“Don’t!” He gasped out, “I just need a minute to adjust before we keep going.”

Daryl nodded, reaching down to jerk Paul off in an attempt to help him relax. It took a minute or two, but slowly Paul’s walls relaxed around him and he was able to slide in deeper. It wasn’t long before he was fully sheathed inside his boyfriend, his balls resting against Paul’s ass.

“Just a minute,” Paul said with some difficulty.

Daryl complied not wanting to hurt Paul anymore and knowing he needed a minute himself if he wasn’t going to cum right now. The tightness of his boyfriend was driving him insane with pleasure. Eventually, Paul started rocking hips hips in gentle motions.

“You can move now,” he whispered, his voice no longer strained.

Daryl gave a shallow, experimental thrust of his hips and sparks flew behind his eyes at the movement. Paul moaned at the movement, encouraging Daryl to do it again. He kept his ministrations short and gentle at first before becoming bolder. He was properly thrusting into his boyfriend now, but still keeping the pace slow and soft.

Paul growled low in his throat and pushed up against Daryl hard, throwing his arms around his neck, pulling him closer.

“More!” Paul gasped out.

Daryl groaned, but planted his arms and did as his boyfriend told him. He started to thrust harder and faster much to Paul’s delight. Their moans mixing together in the cool night air to make music of their own. Mixed in with their moans and the slapping of flesh was the chirping of crickets and occasional hooting of an owl. Paul opened his eyes and gazed up at the sky, a thousand stars winking back at him.

Suddenly, Daryl shifted and Paul’s yelped as his prostate was hit. Daryl, this time recognizing the yelp of surprised pleasure, did it again, but gentler. This had Paul’s head rolling back, eyes closed, and fingernails digging into Daryl’s back. Paul whimpered as Daryl continued to thrust hitting that spot inside his boyfriend each time.

Daryl could feel himself getting close and he could hear Paul’s moans rising in octave which meant so was he. Daryl’s thrusts started to become more erratic as he chased his release. He felt Paul’s walls begin to close in on him as Paul gasped out, cuming hard. Paul’s channel became unbelievably tight around Daryl, punching a growl out of him as Paul came, his cum landing all over his bare chest.

Daryl gave a few more thrusts before burying himself as deep as he could into his boyfriend and cuming. Paul growled at the feeling of Daryl’s cum spilling into his ass as he came. Daryl gave a few more shallow thrusts before pulling out completely, falling on his side next to Paul. They were both quiet for a few minutes as they caught their breath and came back to reality.

Paul could feel Daryl’s cum leaking out of him and it made his feel good to know that he’d made his boyfriend’s cum. Daryl glanced up at Paul from where he was laying, hoping not to see any negative reactions in his face. He wanted to believe that it had been good for both of them, but he wasn’t sure.

“How...” Daryl struggled to speak through his nerves, “How was it?”

Paul smiled sadly at his boyfriend’s lack of confidence.

“It was absolutely amazing, babe,” he comforted him, “I can’t wait to do it with you again.”

Daryl blushed, “Good.”

Paul could feel the cum drying on his chest and between his legs and he knew that was going to be uncomfortable.

“Is there anything I can use to clean up?” Paul asked.

“Shit, yeah,” Daryl said feeling bad about forgetting to clean Paul up.

Daryl reached out to his side and grabbed one of his shirts. He brought it over and gently wiped all the cum Paul’s chest and blushed crimson when he reached between his legs to clean his entrance. He felt his cock give a pathetic twitch at seeing his cum dripping out of Paul. He swallowed hard at the sight, but made quick work of cleaning the mess away.

He tossed the soiled shirt back over his shoulder and pulled Paul close. Daryl pulled the blankets over them, sheltering their naked bodies from the cool night air. Tomorrow it was back to reality and neither of them were eager to leave this place, this safe haven nestled beneath the stars and away from prying eyes. 

“I wish we could stay here forever,” Paul whispered.

Daryl pulled him even closer, holding him in his arms and gazing into his eyes.

“Me too,” he said softly against the pillow.

Paul lifted his head and moved in to kiss his boyfriend gently. They kissed languidly for a while until Paul yawned. Daryl chuckled at the interruption, but instead of insisting on keeping up what they were doing, he turned Paul over and spooned him from behind.

“Go to sleep,” Daryl whispered, “I’ll be here in the morning.”

“You’d better be,” Paul warned him, pulling Daryl’s arms tight around his body.

“Always,” Daryl promised him before they both drifted off to sleep.


	6. Back to Reality

Daryl woke up once again to his arm asleep under him and hair in his face. This time, however, he wasn’t confused or in a hurry to move. Instead, he just started moving his hand as much as he could and burying his nose in his boyfriend’s neck. Memories of losing their virginities to each other last night came back to him slowly as he breathed in Paul’s scent. He could feel his morning wood twitch from where it was pressed against Paul’s ass as last night played over and over in his mind.

Daryl stopped his urge to roll his hips against Paul’s bare ass and instead went for peppering his neck with kisses. He wanted Paul awake to give consent before doing anything even remotely sexual, but he also didn’t want to wake him rudely just because Daryl wanted to know if he wanted to go again. Daryl kissed softly up his boyfriend’s shoulder to his neck, listening to Paul moan softly at his ministrations.

It was about ten minutes of Daryl caressing Paul’s torso and kissing him lightly before Paul groaned and opened his eyes, turning to smile up at his boyfriend.

“What a nice way to way up,” Paul spoke softly in a sleep-laden voice.

Paul stretched a bit as he took in his sensory surroundings, noting Daryl’s hard cock pressing against his ass. Paul chuckled knowing how uncomfortable and difficult it probably was for Daryl to not do anything. He greatly appreciated that Daryl respected him enough to not do anything until he was fully conscious.

“I hoped so,” Daryl mumbled shyly into Paul’s shoulder.

Paul smiled wide at him, using a hand to pull Daryl’s face towards him for a kiss. They kissed gently for a little while until Paul’s neck started to protest the angle. Paul pulled away from Daryl and rested his head back down on the pillow, Daryl’s face chasing after him. Paul smirked and rolled his ass back against Daryl who growled lowly in his ear.

“You sure?” Daryl asked with a strained voice as Paul continued to roll his ass back against him.

“Yeah,” Paul whispered biting his lip as Daryl’s cock poked between his ass cheeks a few times.

Daryl ducked his head back down to kiss his boyfriend’s neck, Paul shifting his head to expose more of it to him. Daryl’s free arm wrapped around his torso and then dipped lower to wrap a hand around Paul’s cock. Using the precum already leaking from the tip, he began to jerk his boyfriend to full hardness.

“Oil...” Paul moaned, torn between thrusting back against Daryl’s cock and forward into his hand.

Daryl chuckled and kissed him on the cheek before lifting his head to see where the oil had gone after last night. Luckily, it hadn’t rolled too far, just out of his reach. He let go of Paul’s cock so that Paul could lean forward and grab it, handing it over his shoulder to Daryl. Daryl poured some onto his fingers and reached down between them, rubbing his slick fingers over Paul’s opening. Paul moaned his encouragement, pushing his hips back against his hand.

Daryl carefully pushed one finger inside, noticing quickly that Paul was still slightly loose from last night. He hadn’t realized that was a thing when it came to sex. He hesitated only briefly before moving onto two fingers faster than he had last night. Paul didn’t show any signs of discomfort as the second finger slipped inside with ease, reaching up to stimulate his prostate. His only response was to groan deep in his throat and continue to grind back on the fingers inside him. Much to both of their surprise, it didn’t take Daryl long at all to have three fingers in to the knuckle in Paul’s ass, scissoring him open and thrusting in and out.

“Come on,” Paul complained, wanting Daryl to hurry up and get inside him.

Daryl chuckled lightly at his boyfriend’s impatience, but obliged his request and removed his fingers. He poured some oil onto his cock making sure to spread it out evenly all over. He used his trapped arm to pull Paul back against his chest and used his other arm to grasp his cock and rub it against Paul’s entrance. Paul whined his impatience, rolling his hips back against Daryl’s cock. Not wanting to tease Paul anymore, Daryl aligned himself and carefully started to push forward. They both groaned in tandem as Daryl slid in all the way with one thrust.

Daryl used his hand to lift Paul’s upper leg up, giving him better access and allowing him to sink in even further. Paul panted beneath him as he adjusted to having Daryl in him again. When he was ready, Paul rolled his hips back against Daryl, urging him to start moving. Daryl gripped Paul’s lifted leg tight and started to thrust his hips, listening to the adorable moans coming from his boyfriend. Paul continued to meet each of Daryl’s thrusts by pushing back against him.

Paul reached down and started jerking himself off in time with Daryl’s deep thrusts. Every time Daryl pushed in he was hitting Paul’s prostate, causing him to cry out in pleasure. Together, they settled into a nice pace that had them both rocketing towards their finish. Paul shouted Daryl’s name as he convulsed, his walls squeezing Daryl’s cock, as he came on the tarp below them. Daryl growled deep in his throat as Paul tightened around him, pushing him over the edge.

Paul moaned softly as he felt the rush of fluid inside him when Daryl came. It had felt weird last night, but now he decided that he kind of liked it. It made him happy to know that he was good enough to bring Daryl to his climax. Daryl gave a few more shallow thrusts to draw out the last of their orgasms before pulling out, carefully lowering Paul’s leg back down to the ground.

This time, he made sure to grab something to clean Paul up right after they were done. Daryl used his free hand to wipe the sweat from his brow as he caught his breath. This position had definitely been a more difficult position, but the experience has been just as enjoyable as last night. Daryl wrapped his arms back around his boyfriend pulling him close and burying his face in his hair.

“Fuck, Daryl,” Paul panted, “That was amazing.”

Daryl blushed at the praise from his boyfriend.

“I’m glad,” Daryl whispered, kissing the top of Paul’s head.

“And as much as I like cuddling, I need to pee.”

Daryl whined against Paul’s throat, but relented and removed his arms from around his boyfriend. Paul got up and made his way behind a bush to relieve himself. Daryl got up as well, pulling on some underwear and jeans as he waited for Paul to be done.

“Um...” Paul called from where he was, “Could you throw me my underwear and pants please?”

Daryl chuckled at his boyfriend’s shyness despite them losing their virginity to each other and having sex twice in the past twelve hours. Daryl grabbed Paul’s underwear and jeans and tossed them to his boyfriend whose face was turning a bright shade of red. Paul quickly pulled them on before leaving the area so that Daryl could use the bathroom too. They both didn’t care too much about using the bathroom together, but the space Daryl reserved for that was quite small and private making it almost impossible for two people to use it at the same time.

Paul groaned in frustration as he tried to comb his hair with his fingers. He managed to get it as smooth as he could, but he still made sure to make a mental note of bringing a comb next time. When they were both done getting dressed, they knew it was time to clean up the campsite and head back into town. They both agreed to get some breakfast at a local diner before parting ways. Paul had homework to do and Daryl had some illegal meat to sell.

They rolled up and blankets and the tarp and placed them back into the container. Paul helped Daryl lower the deer onto the ground so that they could drag it to where Daryl normally met the butcher when he had something to sell. Paul made his way over to the lake and dunked his shirt in to wash the dried cum off as best he could. He really didn’t like the idea of showing up at the group home in a t-shirt covered in dried cum. 

They worked as a team to drag the large buck through the forest and deposit it in a clearing near Daryl’s house. There were ropes already in the trees, ready for Daryl to hoist his large kills up into the trees. Once the deer was secured, they took each other's hands and made their way out of the forest.

Paul threw Daryl a side-eye when he heard him chuckled for the third time despite neither of them having said anything.

“What?” Paul demanded, coming to a stop and placing his hands on his hips.

Daryl shrugged and refused to meet his gaze.

“Come on, Daryl,” Paul groaned, “What’s so funny?”

“Well...” Daryl cleared his throat, “I think that limp you’ve got is rather cute.”

Paul pursed his lips in an attempt to hide his smile, but it didn’t really work. Daryl was essentially giggling now at Paul’s expression.

“And whose fault is that?” Paul said hitting his boyfriend on the shoulder playfully.

Mirth danced in Daryl’s eyes as he jumped out of the way of Paul’s hand. Paul chased after him and they started running in small circles. Eventually, Paul caught up to Daryl jumping on his back who grunted at the sudden weight on him. He reached behind him and slapped Paul on the ass drawing a shocked yelp from his boyfriend. Paul jumped off his back and tried to glare at him, but it didn’t last for long as the two burst out laughing.

Daryl rejoined their hands and continued to lead them out of the woods, still chuckling at Paul slight limp. As the trees began to thin and the sun became brighter, they reluctantly dropped their hands so that a random passerby wouldn’t see them. After all weekend being openly themselves, having to let go of each other was a harsh reminder of the intolerance of their world.

Just before they came out into the open, Paul pushed Daryl back up against a tree and kissed him. They stood there kissing against the rough bark of an oak tree for many minutes, delaying their return to the outside world. Daryl took his time with exploring Paul’s pliant mouth, his fingers tangling in Paul’s hair. Paul’s fingers found their home curled around Daryl’s belt loop and pressing against his neck, pulling his head down to meet him.

The sound of a car driving by on the nearby road had them jumping apart. They glanced at each other with sad eyes knowing that it was their last kiss for a while. Neither of them wanted to be the first one to turn towards the town and leave the sanctuary of the forest. Daryl ran his fingers down Paul’s face, caressing his cheek.

“We’ll come back next weekend,” he whispered, “I promise.”

Paul cupped his hand with his own, pressing into Daryl’s palm.

“I’d like that,” he said, kissing the center of Daryl’s palm.

They both took a deep breath and left the shelter of the trees, blinking hard as they stepped out into the direct sun. In front of them was the road leading into town and they knew their romantic weekend was officially over. Paul did his best to hide his limp as they made their way into town while Daryl walk quietly beside him. They didn’t talk much as they both readjusted to having to pretend like they’re nothing more than good friends.

The entered the local diner, finding a booth at the back of the restaurant so to stay hidden from as many prying eyes as possible. Here they even had to watch when they said in case someone was listening in on their conversation. A young black woman, Sasha, in a green apron came up to their table holding a set of menus.

“Good morning you too,” Sasha beamed down at them, “I missed y’all yesterday. What are you doing mixing up your schedule?”

Daryl smiled back at Sasha, “Yeah, we went camping. Did some hunting, too.”

“Ooh,” she whispered, “Anything I need to hurry to the butchers for tomorrow morning?”

“Got a nice buck, about 150 lbs,” he told her.

She was one of the few people in town he liked and she knew that he was the one providing the butcher with some of his freshest meat outside the normal beef and chicken.

“That means some thick deer chops are in my future,” she winked at him, “Thanks for the tip. That earns you some free homemade beignets. I’ll give you two a minute.”

She left the table writing a note on her pad about the deer chops. Paul had been looking at his menu during the entire exchange. He hadn’t realized that the woman knew Daryl well enough to know about his illegal meat business. He knew Daryl was gay and that he had nothing to worry about, but he also wanted to know why he’d told this seemingly stranger about something that could get him thrown in jail or, at the very least, fined.

“You okay?” Daryl asked glancing worriedly at Paul.

“Yeah, just surprised that some random woman in a diner knows about your hunting business,” Paul said trying not to sound grouchy.

Daryl furrowed his brows at Paul’s tone, but said nothing as the woman was making her way back over with some water. Daryl graciously accepted them from her, thanking her for the water. They both ordered and gave her their menus and she smiled at Daryl before leaving again.

“Seriously, Paul,” Daryl asked, “What’s bothering you?”

“Why does she know about the hunting?” he hissed,crossing his arms and looking out the window, “You could go to jail if she ever decides to snitch.”

Daryl sighed deeply, he’d know as soon as the woman mentioned it that there was something off with Paul.

“Sasha knows because she once saved my life,” he revealed.

Paul’s eyes snapped back to Daryl in shock, “What?!?”

“It was a cold night a few years ago and my father had thrown me out of the house after nearly beating me to death. He’d caught me cooking a nice meal for myself, called me a fag, and then beat me on the floor of our kitchen. She found me huddled on the side of the road bleeding and freezing to death. She took me into her car and drove me back to her house where he warmed me up, bandaged my wounds, and gave me a warm meal. She tried to get me to leave my father, but she’s a single mother back then and I didn’t want to take advantage of her. In exchange for her help, I told her about my deal with the butcher and I was able to convince him to give her a large discount on any of my meat she buys from him. He knows that without her, he wouldn’t be getting fresh meat from me every week or so because I’d be dead.”

Now Paul felt terrible for getting jealous, covering his face with his hands in shame.

“I’m so sorry,” Paul whispered, “I didn’t realize...”

“I know, Paul,” Daryl assured him, “It’s not your fault I never told you about her. I don’t like remembering that night, it’s the closest I’ve ever come to dying.”

Paul saw Sasha coming out of the corner of his eye and he immediately sat up pretending like they hadn’t just been talking about her. She placed Daryl’s chicken-fried steak with sausage gravy and biscuits down next to Paul’s Eggs Benedict and grits. She also set down the promised free plate of beignets in the center of the table. Paul thanked her warmly and she nodded before taking her leave so they could eat.

“We don’t keep in contact as much as either of us would like,” Daryl continued, “because if word got to my father that I was friends with a black woman, he’d kill me and maybe her. That’s how racist my father is. It was hard for me to admit that when I had to tell her that we couldn’t hang out much in public. It’s why I insist on coming here so often, I like seeing her and she likes seeing me.”

“Saving someone from dying does tend to bond you to each other,” Paul mused eating a spoonful of grits.

Daryl nodded at Paul’s comment, enjoying his steak immensely. He also liked coming here simply because they had good food at a price he could afford. He munched on one of the free beignets as he gazed at his boyfriend. He was surprised that Paul had shown any jealousy at all towards a woman knowing that Daryl was gay, but he wondered if it was the romantic side of Paul that had become jealous. It was more likely that he was jealous that this woman had known about something that Paul hadn’t thought anyone except he knew about.

“Why did you get so defensive about her know so much about me?” Daryl finally asked him.

Paul shrugged, “I don’t know really. I just kind of like the idea of it being you and me against the world, you know. Some random person knowing so much just kind of threw me for a moment.”

“I do kind of consider her a safe haven if I am desperate. Her husband is quite kind and her daughter is adorable. I know that should I ever find myself in a situation like that again, I have somewhere safe that I can hide out from my father without alerting authorities.”

“Why don’t you report him and ask to be put in the group home?” Paul asked.

He’d always wondered why Daryl chose to stay in an abusive home while there was a perfectly fine group home in town.

Daryl sighed, “I stay because despite the beatings, I have more freedom staying at home than I would living in a group home. I doubt the people running the group home would be okay with me disappearing to hunt for days at a time and coming back sometimes covered in dirt and animal blood.”

Paul had to admit that no, they wouldn’t have been okay with all that. At the same time Paul wanted Daryl out of his father’s reach, but he understood Daryl’s need for freedom and the ability to do what he needed to do.

“I just wish you didn’t have to worry about protecting yourself from your own father,” he whispered.

“It’s been 18 years and he has yet to break me, I think I’ll survive the eight months left until we graduate in May.”

Paul could only hope that Daryl was right. He wasn’t sure what he would do if he lost Daryl. It wasn’t something he thought he could survive.

A loud crash and shattering of glass drew their attention away from their food and towards the surrounding restaurant. In the middle of the diner stood a tall white man, towering over Sasha who was backed up against the main counter, a dropped tray and a smashed coffee cup at her feet. A large puddle of coffee was spreading out from the cup and the powdered sugar from the house made beignets covered the bottoms of the man’s pant legs and his shoes.

“Now look what you did you stupid black bitch!” the man hollered in Sasha’s face.

Sasha’s boss, an older white woman, was stood behind the counter just looking on, too scared to come forward and defend her employee. She was already looked down on for hiring Sasha when she was pregnant without being married, so she didn’t dare muddle her reputation more in case the towns people decided to stop coming. She’d honestly only hired Sasha because she’d been willing to work for less than minimum wage as she was so desperate to get a job with a baby on the way and no husband.

Sasha’s eyes welled with tears as she tried to get away from the man.

Sasha tried to respond, “I’m sorry, sir. Your foot was in the walkway and I didn’t see it...”

“Shut up!” the man yelled, and slapped her across the face.

Paul gasped in shock at the man’s violent behavior and Daryl jumped out of his seat without hesitation.

“My pants and shoes are ruined...” the man started to say, but he was cut off by Daryl slamming into his side.

Daryl grunted as he hit the man who was just a few inches taller than him, shoving him away from Sasha.  
“The hell?” the man said angrily as he regained his balance.

The entire diner was silent as everyone looked on at the scene unfolding in front of them. The man’s eyes narrowed in on Daryl, hatred burning behind his brown irises.

“Leave her alone,” Daryl warned him, readying for a fight by planting his feet firmly on the ground.

The man started making his way over to Daryl.

“Fucking liberal sympathizer,” the man hissed at Daryl taking a swing at his head.

Daryl saw it coming and ducked, taking the opportunity to send a strong uppercut to the man’s exposed stomach. The man grunted in pain and stumbled back. He didn’t hesitate to attack again. Daryl easily side-stepped the attack sending the man running past him. Daryl could tell his continued evasion of his attacks was starting to piss the man off. This time, the man didn’t go to throw a punch, instead he ran at Daryl and tackled him to the ground.

Daryl’s head collided painfully with the tile ground and he felt a strong punch slam across his face. He gathered enough of his wits to kick up, nailing the man in the stomach again. The man didn’t move off him though and in retaliation grabbed him by the throat, choking him. Daryl heard Sasha yell and her face appeared behind the man’s as she tried to pull him off. The man just kicked out, sending her to the ground.

Daryl clawed desperately at the man, trying to get him to let go, but he could feel himself becoming weak from lack of oxygen. Suddenly, the weight lifted off his neck as the man was flipped off of Daryl. He started coughing for air and looked over to his side where he saw Paul twisting his body around the man. Paul was on his back on the ground, his arms wrapped around the man’s neck, squeezing tight. His legs prevented the man from getting a foothold on the ground and crushing him. Paul held on until the man stopped struggling, but just before he passed out.

Paul let go and shoved the man away, listening with satisfaction as the man gasped for air. Paul immediately made his way over to Daryl and helped him up. The diner was a mess, chairs had been knocked over and tables were out of place. Coffee and food were on the floor and in some people’s laps. Daryl saw that Sasha was still on the floor and raced over to her, kneeling down beside her. She’d been knocked out when she fell and Daryl prayed that she didn’t have a concussion. He lifted her body into his arms and held her against his chest.

Paul stood next to them, ready to defend them if the man decided he hadn’t had enough. If he hadn’t he would find out soon enough that Paul was not to be messed with. As it was, the man eyed them warily.

“I’m going to the police,” the man threatened, “I’ll have you all thrown in jail for this.”

“Sure,” Paul shrugged, “And we’ll all tell them how two teenagers, one of whom is an orphan, and a woman kicked your ass today.”

The man breathed out heavily through his nostrils, his face red with anger.

“Fuck all of you!” the man shouted and then left, slamming the door on his way out.

Paul breathed a sigh of relief as the man left even if he was sure that the entire town would know what happened here in just a few short hours. Paul looked down at his boyfriend who was using his finger to open Sasha’s eyes.

“Paul, call an ambulance,” he instructed, his voice desperate, “There’s blood in her hair and on that table over there. I think she’s got a bad concussion, if not something worse.”

Paul swallowed hard, but did as his boyfriend told him running to the counter. The woman’s boss was still just standing there, looking on at the scene. Paul was pissed at her lack of concern for Sasha.

“Where’s the phone?” Paul yelled at the woman.

She jumped at his tone, but pointed out the cream colored phone hanging on the wall behind the counted. Paul didn’t waste any time walking around the counter, he just jumped up and over the counter. The woman yelped in shock as he landed beside her.

“Oh, shut up you useless piece of shit,” he snapped at her making his way to the phone.

Paul quickly called an ambulance explaining that a man had attacked a woman and that she was now on the floor unconscious and the back of her head was bleeding. The man on the other end of the line told him the ambulance would be there in five minutes. Paul thanked him and then hung up the phone, jumping back over the counter to join Daryl.

Paul could feel Daryl’s worry rolling off of him in waves as he held the woman who’d once saved his life in his arms not being able to do anything other than wait for the ambulance. Paul put his hand on Daryl’s shoulder to comfort him. He really wanted to lean in and kiss him on the cheek, but he knew he couldn’t. He wanted to run his fingers through Daryl’s hair and pull him close, but the people still watching them would surely tell everyone in the town if he did that.

The ambulance arrived and a group of three men came rushing in to take Sasha to the hospital. One of them asked them what had happened and Daryl explain that a man had pushed her and she’d hit her head on a table on the way down. The man nodded and asked Daryl if he knew who the woman’s family was. Daryl quickly told them her home phone number and the name of her husband. The men thanked him, placed her on a gurney, and wheeled her away.

Daryl desperately wanted to go with her, but he knew he wasn’t allowed because he wasn’t family. All he could do was hope that he could go visit her in the hospital tomorrow after school. Paul rubbed his back for a moment as they watched the ambulance disappear around the corner. Daryl took a deep breath and walked back inside the diner. He threw enough money to cover his and Paul’s meals down on the counter, including the beignets, and left without saying a word.

Paul could feel the pain and anger rippling off Daryl as they walked in no particular direction away from the diner.

“You okay?” Paul asked him quietly.

Daryl sighed deeply kicking at a rock on the ground.

“No, I can’t stop thinking about that bastard. I want to find him and rip his racist heart out,” Daryl ranted angrily, “You heard what she said about him tripping her. It was his fault and he hit her for it.”

Paul could understand Daryl’s anger. This was someone he cared about deeply and seeing her treated that way had him more angry than he’s ever been before. Paul motioned for Daryl to follow him into the library, leading him to a small, secluded section towards the back. Paul glanced around them, checking their surroundings before pulling Daryl into a tight hug. Daryl tensed up at first, but soon enough he relaxed into the embrace. They stayed locked in the hug for as long as they dared, pulling back much to soon for either of their liking.

“Thanks,” Daryl whispered.

Paul smiled sadly at him, “I only wish I could do more.”

“You’ve done enough. You need to go back to the group home and I need to go get the butcher.”

Paul understood Daryl’s need to focus on business right now since he couldn’t react the way he wanted to because of societal restraints and expectations.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at school, yeah?” Paul asked him.

“Yeah,” Daryl promised him, “See you at school.”

Paul glanced around again before taking Daryl’s hand and squeezing it. He dropped Daryl’s hand and left the library, Daryl not far behind them. They’d had such a wonderful couple of days and society had already destroyed their joyous moods quite effectively. All they could think about as they left was if Sasha was going to be okay or not.


	7. In the News Today

Daryl rapped his pencil against his leg as he waited impatiently for his last class to end. Paul, who was sitting next to him, was just as anxious for school to end. After the incident at the diner yesterday, Daryl was ready to get to the hospital and check on Sasha. He hadn’t been able to get there earlier and he was desperate to know if she was okay. He’d be absolutely devastated if anything happened to her.

He knew it was risky for him to be seen going to the hospital after the public confrontation, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. Daryl hadn’t gone home last night, a fact that Paul was unaware of. He hadn’t told Paul that he’s been avoiding his house and his father like the plague since there was a high chance that he knew about what had gone down at the diner. His father was one of the most violent, racist men that Daryl knew and he was honestly scared for his life. He’s always been afraid of his father on some level, but this was something much more.

Finally, the bell rang and Daryl didn’t hesitate to bolt for the door, Paul right on his heels. The two quickly made their way downtown on their way to the local hospital. Daryl wasn’t even sure he’d be allowed to see Sasha, but he hoped they’d at least tell him if she was going to be alright. The doors slid open into the blinding white reception area in the front of the hospital. Daryl didn’t hesitate to approach the front desk. Daryl came to a stop in front of the desk, mildly out of breath from how fast he’d booked it to get here. He could hear Paul panting behind him as he came to a stop.

“Hi, how can I help you,” the woman at the desk asked him, looking up from behind her computer.

“I’m here to see Sasha Williams,” Daryl said trying to hide his nerves.

“Okay, what’s your name?” she asked, typing something into her computer.

“Daryl Dixon.”

“And your friend?”

“Paul Rovia.”

“Okay, Mr. Dixon,” she said scrolling through the computer file, “it looks like we’ve got you down as an approved visitor, but I’m afraid Mr. Rovia is not. I can only let you see her, Mr. Rovia will have to wait out here unless I get approval from one of her relatives.”

Daryl wanted to protest, but he knew it would be useless since he wasn’t a family member.

“Are you okay with waiting down here?” Daryl asked turning to Paul.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Just make sure to come let me know if she’s okay.”

“I promise,” Daryl assured him, “And if her husband, Bob, is there I’ll ask him to approve you so that you can come up.”

Paul nodded and left the desk so that Daryl could receive the information he needed to get to Sasha. He made his way over to the waiting area and picked up a newspaper just to pass the time. He choked when he saw the story on the front page. There was a picture of the trashed diner and an article detailing what had gone down there yesterday. It was unsurprisingly written from the perspective of the racist asshole who’d started it all, painting him to look like the victim instead of the adversary. Paul glanced up, ready to call over to Daryl, but he was already gone. Paul sighed and slumped back into his chair, he would have to wait until later to warn Daryl about the article.

* * *

Daryl tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for the elevator to reach the fourth floor. It felt like it was stuck in cement at the rate it was going. In the back of his mind, he knew that it was probably traveling at the normal speed, but with all the anxiety he was feeling it felt like it was taking forever.

He just about bolted out of the doors as soon as they started to open, brushing quickly past an elderly white couple on the other side of the doors who yelled indignantly after him. He ignored them, however, and continued on his way to Sasha’s room. The only thing he could think about currently being how bloody and still she’d been yesterday when the paramedics came for her.

It took him longer than he would’ve liked to locate the room among the confusing hallways of the hospital. He was sweating lightly by the time he reached her door and lifted his hand to knock quietly.

He heard footsteps behind the door and waited patiently for the door to be opened. He looked up as it open and he was thankfully met by the weary gaze of Bob Williams. The man looked like he hadn’t slept all night, the bags under his eyes only proving Daryl’s assumption. In his other arm was their sleeping daughter, Maia, her arm wrapped around her favorite teddy bear with a pink ribbon.

“Hey Daryl,” Bob greeted him wearily, “I was expecting that you’d show up. The paramedics told me what happened at the diner.”

He opened the door wider, inviting Daryl inside. He walked inside to see Sasha in bed hooked up to a bunch of monitors with a breathing mask covering her mouth and nose.

“How is she?” Daryl asked moving to stand beside Sasha’s bed.

She looked so weak hooked up to all these machines, her face paler than he’d ever seen it before.

“The doctors said she’s in a coma, but stable,” he explained, “They say she should wake up within the week.”

“I’m so sorry,” Daryl whispered, taking Sasha’s hand in his.

“Why? None of this was your fault.”

“I should’ve done more. She got hurt trying to pull the guy off of me, I should’ve fought harder. I shouldn’t have let him gain the upper hand.”

“Now none of that,” Bob scolded him, turning him to look him in the eye, “This is that man’s fault, not yours. He shouldn’t have attacked Sasha in the first place, but he did. This is on him and him alone.”

Daryl wanted so badly to believe him, but he couldn’t bring himself to agree that there wasn’t anything he could’ve done differently.

“Hey Bob,” Daryl remembered, “I’ve got a friend, Paul Rovia, in the lobby. He was there when this all happened. Do you think you could ask the receptionist to let him come up?”

“Sure,” he replied, “Can you watch Maia while I go do that?”

“Of course,” Daryl said accepting the child into his arms.

She stirred slightly, but simply yawned and settled against Daryl’s shoulder. Her hair tickling his neck as her head rested on his shoulder. Bob smiled down at her before leaving the room to call the front desk.

Daryl cautiously moved to sit in one of the chairs by the bed, bringing Maia to rest on his lap. He wrapped his arms around the small girl, rubbing her shoulder. He felt guilty that her mother was now laying motionless in the bed in front of them because of him. He shouldn’t have let the man pin him down because if that hadn’t happened, Sasha might not be in the hospital right now for trying to defend him. He let his head rest back on the wall behind him as he waited for Bob to return.

His mind drifted to his father and what might happen should he find out about where he was and what he did. He swallowed hard as he pictured the anger and disgust that would paint his father’s face as he beat him. He prayed silently for his father to not find out about the diner, not wanting to put Sasha and her family in any more danger than he already had by coming here. He knew he should’ve stayed away, but he couldn’t live with not knowing how she was doing.

The door opened again and Bob walked back in.

“He’s on his way up,” Bob told him, settling heavily into the chair next to him, “It’s nice that you have someone.”

Daryl froze as he processed what Bob had said. He hadn’t told him or Sasha about him being gay, worried that they’d reject him if they found out. His brain was racing as he tried to figure out how Bob had figured it out.  _ Had he figured it out? Or was he misreading what he’d said? _

“What?” Daryl managed to choke out.

“It’s nice that you have a friend,” Bob elaborated, “Sasha used to tell me how you’d always come to the diner alone. She came home so excited after she saw you together the first time. We’re both really happy that you finally have someone your age that you trust and can relate to.”

Daryl breathed an internal sigh of relief and relaxed back into the chair. They didn’t know, they were just happy he’d been able to make “friends” with someone his own age.

“Yeah, it’s nice not feeling so lonely all the time anymore,” he admitted fiddling with the bow on Maia’s teddy bear.

Bob opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by a knock on the door. Bob got up and opened it to reveal Paul holding a newspaper. Daryl was immediately on high alert upon seeing Paul’s face. He looked upset, but he was hiding it well. If Daryl didn’t know him so well, he might not have even noticed that something was off.

“Hi, you must be Paul,” Bob greeted him holding his hand out, not noticing that something was wrong, “I’m Bob, Sasha’s husband.”

“It’s nice to meet you, sir,” Paul responded politely, accepting the handshake, “How is she?”

“She’s stable at the moment, her chances of waking up are high.”

“That’s wonderful news,” Paul smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

Paul entered the room and made a beeline for Daryl. He smiled at the child asleep in his lap, but he could tell Daryl knew he was upset. Paul wasted no time in handing the newspaper over to Daryl.

“What happened at the diner is all over the front page of the local news,” Paul said as he shoved the paper into Daryl’s free hand.

“Shi... crap,” Daryl said, glancing down at Maia.

Paul swallowed nervously, “Daryl, does your dad read this paper?”

“Yeah,” Daryl said absentmindedly, then he froze and looked up at Paul, “What does it say?”

“The owner of the diner knows who you are because of how often you eat there and since you’re not a minor, they’re legally allowed to print your name,” Paul explained, “Daryl, they’ve got your full name in there, Daryl Dixon. They go on to detail how you ‘attacked a white man after a black waitress, your friend, spilled food all over him.’”

Daryl could feel the blood drain from his face as he listened to Paul talk about what was in the article. His father would kill him when he saw this. He’d probably come after Sasha and her family too if he found out that she was the waitress he was friends with. His father would never let a friendship with a black couple ‘tarnish’ the Dixon reputation.

“What does this mean?” Bob asked from where he was standing, still by the door.

“It means I can’t go home,” Daryl mumbled, “At least not when my father’s there. It also means that this hospital is the safest place for you, Sasha, and Maia. My father will find out it’s Sasha I’m friends with and he will come after you, especially if he can’t get to me.”

Paul could see the fear in Bob’s face as he listened to Daryl. The man was scared for his family’s well being and rightfully so. Paul might not have lived here long, but he knew Daryl’s father was not someone who made empty threats. The man had been behind bars before many times for assault, but the cops had always let him off the hook for some reason. Paul figured it was because he’d only ever attacked black people.

“Where are you going to live?” Paul asked him.

Daryl just shook his head, “I can’t risk staying in the woods behind my house, my father will know to look there. Shit, all my stuff is back at the house.”

“Can’t you just leave it?” Paul hoped.

“No, all the money I’ve made is there hidden under the floorboards in my closet. My crossbow’s there too, I’d rather not leave that behind.”

Paul rubbed his hands over his face, “You sure you want to risk returning?”

“I have to, babe. I need that money so that we can leave together like we...” he trailed off remembering that they’re not alone.

Paul’s eyes widened in shock as he realized what Daryl had just said. Daryl slowly turned to look over at Bob who couldn’t have missed him calling Paul babe. Bob was just staring at them, his eyes flicking back and forth between the two of them. His lips kept moving like he wanted to say something, but wasn’t sure what.

“Uh... Bob?” Daryl tried hesitantly, scared that the man was going to yell at them to leave and never speak to them again.

“You two are...” he started, but trailed off.

Paul stayed silent and let Daryl deal with it since he knew Bob better. He’d step in if he needed to, but he knew this was a big deal despite the fact that he was obviously comfortable around them. Normally Daryl would never have slipped up like that, but with the stress of finding out about the article paired with how safe he felt here, it must’ve slipped his mind.

“You’re not just friends, are you?” Bob finally managed to get out.

“No,” Daryl admitted, hanging his head to stare at the floor, “We’ve been together for over a month now.”

When Bob didn’t respond, Daryl continued, “We’ll leave.”

He started to get up, still holding Maia tightly against his chest, when Bob finally regained his motor functions and moved to stop him.

“No!” Bob blurted out suddenly, causing Daryl to flinch.

“No,” he said softer, “You don’t have to leave.”

Daryl hesitantly relaxed back into the chair, Maia letting out a few sleepy gurgles against his chest as they resettled.

“I’m sorry,” Bob explained, “I was just shocked, is all. I’m not going to pretend that I fully understand it, but I don’t care if you two... whatever.”

“Make out?” Paul supplied shrugging.

Daryl’s face turned beat red at Paul’s implication.

“Paul!” he yelped.

“What?” he asked, feigning innocence.

Bob chuckled, thankful for the ice breaker.

“No, I don’t care if you two kiss. However, maybe don’t make out in front of my daughter, but that’s not because you’re both boys. I don’t want her knowing that’s a thing until she’s eighty,” he joked, moving forward to sit in the chair next to Daryl and run his hand over Maia’s curls.

Daryl laughed at Bob’s protective comment, but he could honestly admit that he felt the same way sometimes. After all, she was the little sister he never had.

“You don’t think Sasha will care about me being gay, do you?” Daryl asked, scared of the answer.

“Daryl, Sasha loves you like her own son,” Bob assured him, “Nothing you could ever do would ever make her stop loving you. She’s not going to care that you like men.”

Daryl nodded, “Thanks, Bob.”

Maia started to fuss in her sleep, so Bob took her back. Her nap time was just about over, so he figured the girl would be waking up soon. She’d tried so hard to stay awake and look after her mother, but after two hours of fighting sleep, she’d finally succumbed to it.

Paul debated really hard about his next move, but eventually just told himself “fuck it” and sat down in Daryl’s lap. Daryl jumped slightly in surprise and looked over to gauge Bob’s reaction who just shrugged. Seeing that Bob didn’t care, Daryl let Paul rest back against him, both of his legs dangling off to one side and one of his arms wrapped around Daryl’s neck. Paul had thought about sitting on the bed, but since he didn’t know Sasha too well he didn’t feel comfortable doing it.

“Seriously though Daryl,” Paul said after a few minutes of quiet, “what are we going to do about your father?”

“I don’t know, babe,” he whispered back, “I honestly don’t know.”


	8. Snap Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daryl gets caught trying to get his stuff from home

Paul glanced sideways at the empty seat beside him, his concern for Daryl at an all time high. Daryl hadn’t shown up at school today and Paul didn’t know why. He could be sick, but with what happened at the diner becoming public information, he was worried. Bob had gotten one of his neighbors to bring him everything he needed to pretty much live in the hospital until Sasha wakes up. He was going to talk to her about what she wanted to do when she woke up not wanting to make that call alone.

Paul knew he needed to find Daryl so he decided to ditch school as soon as this class was over. There was only about five minutes left and this was the first class of the day, so he figured he could wait. The town wasn’t super big, but there were many places he could be. He could’ve sought out sanctuary at the library and decided to stay there all day. He could be out hunting to make more money for them to live off when they leave. He could be with Sasha at the hospital since he hadn’t wanted to leave anyway. But scariest of all, Paul worried that he’d gone home this morning and his father had caught him.

After leaving the hospital yesterday, Daryl had called the bar his father frequented and asked if they’d seen him. The bartender told him his father was there right then and ranting about how “his son betrayed him or something.” Daryl had thanked the man and practically collapsed onto the floor. Paul had half caught him and helped keep him stable. Paul could see how scared Daryl was of his father and again begged him not to go home. Daryl had only shaken his head and explained again that they needed the money.

“Paul, I’ve got over $3,000 hidden in that closet from all the meat I’ve sold over the past few years,” Daryl revealed.

Paul was shocked that it was so much. He hadn’t realized how profitable it was to hunt and sell meat. Paul knew how much that money could help them, but he would rather live on the streets after leaving than lose Daryl forever. He was so scared that Daryl’s father would catch him and kill him.

They’d spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out in the library until Paul had to go back to the group home. Out of desperation and fear of maybe losing him, Paul had dragged Daryl into the public men’s bathroom and, after making sure they were alone, kissed Daryl goodbye. He’d yelped in shock, but responded immediately. They didn’t dare kiss for too long, however, as anyone could walk in at any moment.

Afterwards Daryl had left the bathroom and that was the last Paul had seen him.

* * *

Daryl left the bathroom after Paul had dragged him in there to kiss him goodbye. He knew Paul was scared for his well being and honestly, so was he. He hadn’t told Paul where he was going to be spending the night because he didn’t want Paul to worry. He was going to sleep in a section of the woods that he knew his father didn’t go to very often.

His father hated going there was because it was a swamp with few spots of dry land. Daryl had taken the time to learn how to traverse the nasty area, but one could easily fall into the murky, muddy water. It wasn’t necessarily dangerous, just gross. He was planning on sleeping there under a few blankets in a small cave he’d found and going to his house in the morning.

He was going to his house in the morning because he couldn’t be sure his father wasn’t home already. He hoped going in the early morning would increase his chances of his father being passed out and dead to the world. All he needed to get was his stash of money and crossbow. He could do without everything else, but he needed those items. He needed the money to fund his life after he and Paul leave and his crossbow is how he earned money.

Daryl was hyper aware of his surroundings as he made his way into the forest behind his house. He went to the clearing he and Paul had made love under the stars for the first time and grabbed some blankets and an insulated tarp for the ground. He piled them all into his arms and set off towards the swamp. He carefully navigated the wet ground and sloping shores leading into the murky water. When he finally made it to the cave, he breathed a sigh of relief and dropped his bedding onto the dry ground.

He quickly made his bed and laid down. Despite the danger he was in from his father, he couldn’t help but find the outdoors calming. He could hear frogs and crickets in the tall grass and watched as the stars twinkled in the sky. He thought of Paul and their time together out here and fell asleep with a smile on his face.

* * *

Morning came faster than Daryl had hoped it would. He winced as the hard ground had made his back ache. He missed the soft ground that he’d carefully prepared back in the clearing he normally slept in. He sat up and stretched noticing that the sun was just peaking over the horizon, shining through the trees on the outer edges of the swamp. He carefully packed up his bed to prevent any wildlife from crawling into his bed since he was coming back tonight.

He knew that he was already late for school according to where the sun was, but he couldn’t bring himself to care too much. He knew he needed to get there at some point today to prove to Paul that he was okay, but he also knew that after getting his stuff he would need to come back out here and hide all of it. He also needed to get the waterproof bin from behind his house to protect his money in case it rained. He would need to find a safer place to store it soon, but the bin in the swamp would have to work for now.

As he made his way back out of the swamp, he devised a plan on how he would get everything he needed as fast as possible. He’d first go for the money since that was the most important thing. Then he would go for his crossbow and maybe, if he had time, his only handgun. There were bears in the woods and if he was going to be living out there for the next couple of months, he was going to want something with a little more firepower. He also really didn’t want his dad to find it.

He swallowed nervously as his house came into view. He pulled the waterproof bin out from its hiding spot and placed in an area he could easily grab should he need to make a quick getaway. He couldn’t see anyone walking around inside, but he wanted to go around to the front just to be sure. He saw that his father’s truck wasn’t in the driveway and he breathed out a sigh of relief. It wasn’t a certain thing that he wasn’t home, but it was more likely that he wasn’t. Daryl went back around to the back entrance and opened the door as silently as he could manage.

Once inside he tiptoed back towards his bedroom. He couldn’t hear any noise from the rest of the house, but he still didn’t allow himself to relax. He opened the door to his bedroom and froze. Sitting there on one of the kitchen chairs with a loaded shotgun in his hand was his father.

His father wasted no time in pointing the gun at his face and Daryl knew he was trapped. He felt his mouth go dry as his eyes fell on the gun that was now pointed at him.

“Dad,” Daryl gulped wishing he’d listened to Paul and not come back.

“I’ve been waiting for you to show up,” he growled, “You’ve got some explaining to do.”

“You shouldn’t believe everything you read in the news,” he tried nervously.

His father stood up to his full height, standing a full half foot above Daryl’s head. Daryl stepped back as his father moved towards him. Daryl’s back hit the wall of the hallway and he gulped as the gun pushed up against his stomach. If his father fired that gun right now, he’d die within minutes. He closed his eyes as his father leaned down in his face.

“Why shouldn’t I believe that you’re friends with that black bitch?” he hissed, “I’ve been reading that paper for years and it’s never been wrong before.”

“They didn't know the true story.”

“Oh really? Why don’t you tell me it then,” his father yelled in his face.

Daryl flinched back against the wall, his mind racing as he tried to come up with a story that his father would believe. He wouldn’t believe him if he said that the man had attacked him first, so he needed to come up with a story that made him less of a target to his father. He also needed to come up with a way to get Sasha and her family off his radar.

“I only defended her because she was a woman. I thought we were supposed to defend women. If it had been a black man, I’d have left the situation alone,” he said in a last ditch attempt to save his life.

“You trying to be a gentleman?” he father spat, pushing the gun harder against his chest.

“Yes!” he whimpered, the gun digging uncomfortably into chest, “I wondered what I would do if that was the girl I’m dating at school.”

“You’re dating a black woman?!?” he yelled.

“No! She’s white,” he yelped, quickly revising his statement, “She’s got long brown hair, blue eyes, the works. She’s the perfect American girl.”

He felt the gun travel up his chest and stop under his chin, forcing his head up towards his father’s.

“Good, but you still defended a black,” his father said lowly, his tone threatening.

The next the Daryl knew, his father punched him in the face. He fell to the ground hard, his head smacking against the floor painfully. That when his father’s fists started raining down on him. He felt the impact of steel toed boots against his stomach. He heard the clinking of his father’s belt buckle and he felt himself start to cry. He grabbed at the ground, trying to pull himself away, but his father saw him and planted a foot in the middle of his back.

The foot on his back pressed him into the ground, the tread surely leaving a footprint on his back. The first swing of his father’s belt struck the side of his face, leaving a red welt behind. Daryl cried out as the hits kept coming, covering his arms and back. Wanting to see what he was doing, his father bent down and ripped Daryl’s shirt open, almost choking him while trying. His father removed his foot from his back, but Daryl was too tired to move. The belt starting stinging across his back once again. He felt the abused flesh of his back split open and start to bleed.

He could feel the tears tracking down his face and he prayed that he’d make it out of this one alive. He had so much more he wanted to do with Paul before he died. He wanted to travel the world, he wanted to kiss Paul in public without fearing for his life, hell, he wanted to marry Paul someday. If he died here he would never get the chance to do any of that.

His father kicked him in the head sending his thoughts spinning. He felt light headed and his thoughts were moving in slow motion. Daryl could’ve sworn he heard the front door open, but he was too disoriented to really think straight. He heard a shout and he wasn’t sure if it was him or his father, but then the blows stopped. Daryl was confused at why his father stopped, but he prayed that he was done no matter what the reason was.

He barely registered his father moving away from him. He was yelling at someone, but Daryl couldn’t see who. The next thing he knew, a shot rang out and his face was covered in what he assumed was blood splatter. Daryl jerked back away as he registered that he’d just been sprayed with blood that wasn’t his own. He heard someone yell his name and he heard footsteps coming towards him.

He whimpered and shrunk in on himself, afraid that it was his father back to finish the job.

“Daryl!” the voice said as they dropped to their knees next to his head.

He flinched when he felt hands on his head, but they were gentle, not harsh. Daryl slowly blinked his eyes open and waited for his blurry vision to clear. Sitting in front of him was Paul. His eyes were wild and he looked scared out of his mind.

“Daryl, can you hear me? Please answer me,” Paul begged and Daryl noticed that he was crying.

“Paul?” Daryl whispered, blinking slowly his mind slowly slipping away.

“Yeah, it’s me,” he said running his fingers through Daryl’s hair, “I’ve called the cops.”

“No cops,” Daryl forced out, “They’ll send me away.”

“I had no choice,” Paul whispered, “You’re in bad shape and...”

Daryl was worried about what else was wrong. Had his father injured Paul as well?

“What?” Daryl asked quietly.

“I killed him,” Paul gulped, not meeting Daryl’s eyes.

“Who?”

“Your father,” he revealed.

Daryl had to play what Paul said over again in his head a few times to really absorb the information he’d just received.

“What?” Daryl choked out.

“I came in and saw him beating the hell out of you,” he explained, “You were already almost unconscious, but he wasn’t stopping. I had to do something to get him to stop, so I grabbed the shotgun on the ground and pointed it at him. He left you alone, but he came after me. I panicked and fired. I didn’t mean to kill him.”

“Paul, that’s a semi-automatic shotgun, what did you mean to do?”

“I only wanted to injure him so that I could knock him out, but the shotgun has more kick than I thought it would, so I missed.”

“You sure he’s dead?”

Paul nodded, “I’m sure.”

Paul stayed by Daryl trying to keep him awake until the cops and ambulance arrived. Without even listening to his story, Paul was cuffed and thrown into the back of a police car. He’d desperately begged to stay with Daryl, but they’d ignored him. Daryl had even tried to plead his case, but he was cut off when the paramedics placed an oxygen mask over his mouth.

“We’re going to take you back to the station where we’ll decide if we’re going to charge you with murder. We can talk about you seeing your friend if you’re found to be innocent,” the officer in charge had told him.

Paul cried as he was shoved into the back of the police car. He was being treated like he was already guilty when they hadn’t even listened to him. He’d tried to explain that it was self defense and that Will Dixon was trying to kill his son. They just told him they’d listen to him back at the station and to shut up. They were all acting like this incident was more of an inconvenience than a child abuse case.

Paul watched as Daryl was loaded into the back of the ambulance and taken to the hospital. He jumped when the driver’s side of the car opened and the cop got in. He was scared about how the rest of this day was going to go with Daryl on his way to the hospital and him on his way to the police station.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated! <3


	9. Charges

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Use of homophobic language

Paul sat in the interrogation room shaking as he waited for one of the cops to come into question him. They’d practically dragged him into the station over half an hour ago and nobody had entered the room yet. His hands were cuffed to the table in front of him making it impossible for him to curl in on himself. He was forced to sit at the table with his hands in front of him doing nothing while he waited. His mind was a torrent of fear and worry over Daryl’s wellbeing and the outcome of his time at the station.

Every once and a while a cop would walk by the door and glare at him. He honestly didn’t know why they hated him so much already. He knew that he’d shot a man, but Will Dixon wasn’t exactly well liked among the people of this town. The cops really didn’t like Will because of his many drunken bar fights and frequent disorderly conduct, so he didn’t understand why they seemed to hate him so vehemently.

Finally, the door opened and a tall white man with dark brown hair came into the room. His face was unwelcoming and Paul gulped as he looked up at the man from where he was sitting.

“Paul Rovia?” he asked sitting down heavily in the chair across from Paul.

“Yes, sir,” he confirmed nervously.

This man was not giving off the vibe of someone who cared about him. His eyes were dark and conveyed no sense of sympathy or care.

“You’re here for killing a man. Mr. William Dixon in fact,” the man reminded him, “Do you deny that?”

Paul didn’t know if he should answer the question or ask for a lawyer. Hell, he didn’t know if he’d actually get a lawyer if he asked for one. He desperately wanted this to be over so that he could go see Daryl.

Paul fiddled with the cuff on his wrist and said nothing.

The officer glared at him, “Do you deny killing Will Dixon, yes or no?”

Paul refused to answer the question directly afraid that his statement would be taken out of context.

The officer leaned forward and folded his hands on the table. He looked annoyed at Paul refusal to just answer yes or no.

“Let’s try this again,” he said, his tone low and threatening, “I’m Officer Shane Walsh and you need to answer my questions now.”

Paul could feel his body shaking with fear and stress.

“Lawyer,” Paul forced out, “I want a lawyer.”

Officer Walsh slammed his fist down on the table, scaring Paul. Paul jerked back hard against his restraints causing them to harshly cut into his wrists.

“Fine faggot, I’ll get you your damn lawyer,” he hissed leaning into Paul’s personal space.

Paul gasped when he heard the slur. _ Does this cop know he’s gay? Or is he just using the terms as a generic insult? _Paul watched as a cruel smile crossed the man’s face.

“Oh yeah, we know,” Walsh confirmed, “We’ve got an open case involving the library so we checked all the security tapes just this morning. There are cameras in that bathroom, pointed away from the stalls of course, but they’re there. Imagine out surprise to see two boys sneaking in there to make out.”

Paul could’ve sworn that his heart stopped when he heard that. He and Daryl had been outed by a library security camera to the entire police department. Paul could feel the dread welling up in the pit of his stomach as he started to wonder if this his detainment wasn’t solely motivated by him killing Will Dixon.

“My sexuality doesn’t make me guilty,” he said, trying to sound confident.

Walsh just chuckled, “Maybe not, but we do have an assault we can charge you with at least. Your boyfriend, too.”

Paul was confused for only a second before he remembered the man at the diner. Paul could feel himself wanting to cry again, but he refused to show the cop in front of him that he was vulnerable.

“The only reason we didn’t arrest Daryl too was because he was headed to the hospital,” Walsh revealed, “But you can bet the second he’s cleared to leave we’ll be bringing him here. We’ve already got an officer on the way over there to make sure he doesn’t run. I’ll go get your lawyer.”

Walsh left the room, slamming the door behind him and Paul let out a sob. Everything had gone to hell so fast that his mind wasn’t fully able to process it. He didn’t know what was going to happen now that they had something they could for sure pin against him. The man at the diner had seen both their faces and the officers were way more likely to back the straight white man than them.

Paul crossed his arms in front of him on the table and rested his head on them, sobbing into the crook of his arm. He wished he could warn Daryl to run before the cop arrived at the hospital, but there was nothing he could do from here. He made a mental note to remind himself that if he got out of this, he’d teach himself how to slip a pair of handcuffs.

* * *

Rick Grimes didn’t entirely agree with Shane’s hatred towards the boy he’d brought in earlier for killing Will Dixon. The boy couldn’t be any more than eighteen years old. His eyes were red and face stained from crying as Shane roughly dragged him into the precinct. Rick had been shocked when Shane told him he’d chained him to the table.

“Don’t you think that’s overkill?” he asked his best friend, “The kid has to be scared out of his wits already.”

“I don’t care what he feels,” Shane argued, “That boy’s not right in the head.”

“Why? Because he’s gay?”

“Well, yeah. That shit’s not natural, man. Plus, we’ve got a pending assault charge against him.”

Rick glared at Shane, “You and I both know that man’s story is bullshit. He changed what happened like six times.”

Shane just shrugged, “I’m going with the story the media printed. I’m not really in the mood to start a riot by arresting an upstanding man like Mr. Graves over a racially motivated misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding?” Rick looked at Shane in disbelief, “He slapped the woman because she accidentally spilled some powdered sugar on him.”

“I know you wanted to bring him in, but it’s not worth the headache,” Shane replied dismissively.

Rick shook his head, “What are you going to do with the boy? You and I both know we won’t be able to get a murder charge to stick unless he outright confesses. Nobody in this town liked Will Dixon enough to care how he died.”

“I know. I tried to get him to confess, but he wouldn’t budge,” Shane turned in his chair to stare at his friend, “What would you have me do with the little faggot?”

“I’d let him go,” Rick admitted, “We both know it was self defense against Mr. Dixon, the crime scene proves that. And I’d drop the phony assault charges against him and Daryl.”

“So you’re okay with letting a couple of faggots run free in our town?”

Rick sighed, “Yeah, I am. I’d be willing to bet they won’t be sticking around long after they graduate. They’d be murdered if they ever tried to be in a public relationship in this town.”

“I don’t want to be the one taking heat over letting him walk free knowing what we do. I’m up for a promotion in a couple months.”

“You won’t have to,” Rick decided, “Give the cases to me. I’m sure you won’t mind the extra time off.”

“Nah,” Shane declined his offer, “I’ll wait and see what happened when his lawyer shows up. Maybe the kid will confess in order to take a plea deal and it’ll all work out. If he doesn’t, it’s all yours.”

Rick nodded knowing that he wasn’t going to be able to change his friend’s mind over this. He went back to his paperwork, filling out a report over the vandalization of the high school’s billboard. He hoped that the kid was stubborn and smart enough not to confess to something he didn’t do just to take the easy way out. If he got handed that case, he was going to dismiss everything immediately and move on with his life. The nature of Will Dixon’s death hadn’t made it out the media yet and he was hoping to keep it that way for a while yet.

* * *

Daryl came to only to find his right hand restrained when he tried to rub his eyes. He jerked his hand and realized he was cuffed to his bed, which he didn’t recognize either. His memory started slowly coming back to him and he remembered that he was in the hospital because of his father. His father who was now dead, thanks to Paul. He could just barely recall some officers cuffing and throwing Paul into the back of a police car. That didn’t explain, however, why he was cuffed to his bed.

He blinked his eyes open and looked around his room. He jumped when his eyes landed on a uniformed police officer sitting in one of the chairs next to his bed watching him. He was confused by his presence and wanted to ask the cop what he was doing there, but his throat was painfully dry.

He glanced over and saw a cup of water sitting on the bedside table on his right side. He went to grab it with his right hand, but the cuff stopped him. He groaned in frustration and tried to pull himself up a bit to reach over with his left hand. The movement put a strain on his back and he yelped in pain, falling back against the bed. He sighed and looked over at the cop who was still just watching him.

He cleared his throat and croaked out, “You mind helping me out here?”

The officer didn’t look happy about it, but he got up from the chair and got him the water. Daryl nodded his thanks and downed the drink. His throat feeling much better, he looked up at the cop as he took the cup back from him.

“Why are you here? And why am I cuffed to my bed?” he asked.

“As soon as they clear you to leave, I’ll be taking you down to the station. I’m here to make sure you don’t run before we have a chance to do that,” the cop revealed.

“On what charges?” Daryl asked confused.

“Felony assault against Mr. Graves at the local diner.”

Daryl sighed when he heard that and let his head fall back to stare at the ceiling. Of course that racist bastard was pressing charges against him for the diner. The cops probably believed his bulltshit story about them attacking him unprovoked.

“Where’s Paul?” he wanted to know.

“Rovia?” the officer clarified.

Daryl nodded.

“Your boyfriend’s already at the station being questioned...”

“Boyfriend!?!” Daryl gasped jerking up slightly, shocked by the cop’s words.

“Yeah, everyone at the station knows you’re a couple of fags,” the cop explained.

“How...?” Daryl trailed off.

“Open case at the library. You really think the library’s bathroom isn’t monitored?”

“Fuck,” Daryl groaned laying back heavily against the bed, “What are you charging him with?”

“It’s not my case so I’m not sure. I do know that Officer Walsh wants to question him about your father’s death and the assault charges against you and him.”

“I can tell you he’s innocent on both charges,” Daryl argued.

“Don’t care,” the cop told him.

Daryl sighed, he’d figured as much. Nobody in this town would give a single shit about what happened to him and Paul, except for Sasha and her family. He glanced down at the cuff on his wrist and groaned knowing there was no way he was getting out of this one. Besides, if they both got sent to prison over this, maybe they’d at least get sent to the same one.

* * *

Paul shot up from the table when a door slamming woke him up. He’d passed out from crying a few hours ago, too tired from the days events to stay awake. He yelped in pain when the jerking motion caused the cuffs to cut into his skin again. He could see the bruises already forming around his wrists. He looked up to see who’d come in and saw that it wasn’t the same man as before.

This man was dressed in a suit and holding a briefcase. He was much older than Officer Walsh and his eyes were much kinder.

“Hello Mr. Rovia, I’m Dale Horvath” he greeted Paul coming to sit across from him, “I’m here to act as your lawyer.”

“Mr. Horvath...” Paul started, but was cut off.

“Please, call me Dale,” the man said smiling at him.

“Okay, Dale. I don’t know what to do?” Paul admitted.

“That’s why people like me exist,” Dale reassured him, “I’m here to help you prove your innocence.”

Paul could feel himself relaxing a bit with Dale. The man appeared to really be here to help him. Paul watched as he started pulling out some files from his briefcase and placing them down on the table.

“I’ve reviewed everything in your case and really all they’ve got on you is the assault charge,” Dale explained, “They’ll never be able to make a murder or even a manslaughter charge stick based on the evidence collected from the crime scene.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, as long as you don’t outright confess to it being one of those two and stand strong with your self defense statement, they wouldn’t be able to get a conviction. Not with Will Dixon’s actions directly before his death and his past records of violence.”

Paul couldn’t help but breathe out a sigh of relief, “But what about the assault charge?”

“That one is going to be a bit harder to work around,” Dale admitted, “The whole town believes you attacked him unprovoked thanks to the local news running Mr. Graves’ side of the story. It will be very hard to get the cops here to go against what’s been reported.”

“So what can I do?”

“Don’t plead guilty, whatever you do,” Dale advised him, “Never plead guilty to something you didn’t do. You know you’re innocent and if Mr. Graves refuses to drop the charges, I’ll do everything I can to defend you in court.”

Paul nodded, “What happens if we lose?”

Dale sighed, “If we lose, you’ll probably end up in juvie until you’re eighteen. Then, they’ll review your case and decide if you should be sent to an adult prison to continue your sentence or if they’ll let you out on probation.”

“What about Daryl? He’s already eighteen.”

“He’ll be tried as an adult in a different court. If he loses there, he’ll go to jail.”

“So even if we go to jail, we won’t be together?”

Dale shook his head, “I’m sorry, but no.”

Paul could feel tears welling up in his eyes again as he looked down the barrel of what he was sure was coming his way. There was no way a jury made up of people from this town would find him or Daryl innocent of assault on Mr. Graves.

“And if I take a plea deal?”

“I don’t recommend...”

“I know, but what could happen if I do?”

Dale looked hard at his client. He could tell the boy was scared not only for himself, but his boyfriend, too.

“You’ll still probably end up going to juvie until you’re eighteen and Daryl will still go to jail. It’ll be for reduced sentences, but you both will still end up going away for this.”

“So you’re telling me,” Paul confirmed, “that our only chance at freedom is proving we’re innocent in a trial?”

“That or getting Mr. Graves to drop the charges against you.”

“Is there any way to find out what it would take for him to do that?” Paul asked desperately.

“I can give him a call on your behalf,” Dale suggested.

“Would you please?”

Dale nodded, “Okay, I’ll call him. I can’t promise that I’ll be able to change his mind.”

“I know,” Paul assured him, “All I want is a chance.”

“That I can give you,” Dale promised him before packing up his stuff and leaving the room, “Just remember, no matter what they do, do not plead guilty.”

Paul nodded his understanding and watched as Dale left. He placed his head down on the table in front of him and started begging every god from every religion he could think of to please let Mr. Graves drop the charges against him and Daryl.


	10. Apologies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: brief used of homophobic language

Dale made his way up the steps to Mr. Graves home. The man had begrudgingly accepted a meeting with him at his home to discuss the case he had against Paul and Daryl. Dale had thought long and hard about how he was going to get Mr. Graves to drop the charges. He knew the man was going to be a stubborn asshole despite the two offenders being only teenagers. He also knew that he’d probably only drop the charges if he could he convinced that doing so would be in his best interests.

Reviewing the case for what felt like the hundredth time, he noticed that it reported Sasha Williams, the waitress he’d hit at the diner, was in a coma at the hospital. It was barely a footnote in the files, but it was all he needed. He needed to explain to Mr. Graves that he would release the information about him putting a woman in a coma to the media if he didn’t drop the charges. Dale also planned on showing him how to spin the story in his favor. If he dropped the charges he could claim to be a kind, compassionate man by letting two young boys who’d made a mistake not have to pay for it for the rest of their lives.

Mr. Graves’ maid opened the door and let him in. She was a young white woman, but around her neck hung an expensive necklace. Dale’s eyebrow rose briefly at the sight of it. He wondered if Mrs. Graves knew he was having an affair with their maid. Either way, it was none of his business what the man did in his private time. She took his coat and pointed him in the direction of Mr. Graves’ study.

Dale knocked lightly on the door, calling out to the man, “Mr. Graves, it’s Dale Horvath.”

The door opened and Mr. Graves greeted him politely, “It’s good to meet you, Mr. Horvath.”

Despite the words, Dale could easily tell that Mr. Graves was not pleased to have him in his house at all.

“I have some things about the case that I’d like to discuss with you,” Dale reminded him, waiting to be invited inside the man’s study.

Mr. Graves gave him a curt nod and led him into the room.

“Feel free to take a seat, Mr. Horvath,” he said as he went to sit down behind his desk.

Dale wasted no time in taking a seat and pulling out the medical records he’d gotten from the hospital on Sasha’s condition.

“Would you mind telling me exactly what happened at the diner that day?” Dale began, wanting to ease the man into a false sense of security by pretending to care about his side of the story.

“Like I told the local news, the waitress dumped food all over me. I was understandably angry and so I yelled at her. That’s when the first boy, Dixon, attacked me unprovoked. I simply defended myself from him by getting him on the ground. Just as I was letting him up, I was attacked by his friend, Rovia, and held in a choke hold until I almost blacked out.”

“That’s all that happened?” Dale asked.

“Yes, that’s all that happened,” Mr. Graves confirmed.

“It says in the report from the hospital that Sasha Williams, the waitress who spilled food on you, is in a coma resulting from what happened that night. How did this occur?”

Dale watched as the man crossed his arms defensively, “I don’t know. It all happened too fast.”

“Really? Rovia told me she tried to stop you from strangling Dixon and you pushed her into a table where she hit her head and blacked out.”

Mr. Graves said nothing as Dale continued, “Mr. Rovia also said Mr. Dixon didn’t attack you until after you slapped Mrs. Williams. One could argue that he was acting in defense of his friend.”

Dale could practically see Mr. Graves prickling with anger as he spoke. If looks could kill, Dale would most definitely be a pile of smoldering ash on the floor right now.

“If Sasha dies,” Dale continued, ignoring the man in front of him, “her husband could press an involuntary manslaughter charge against you and he’d probably win. It’s very obvious that her injuries weren’t self inflicted and there are a ton of witnesses to the incident, including Mr. Rovia and Mr. Dixon.”

Dale knew that the report in his hands said that Mrs. Williams was going to make it, but he wasn’t about to tell Mr. Graves that unless he asked to look at the documents himself.

“They can’t testify if they’re locked up,” Mr. Graves protested.

“Actually, a lawyer is able to call on any witness they please, even if the person is incarcerated,” Dale said shutting Mr. Graves down hard.

The man’s face was practically red with anger at this point and Dale knew he was close to winning.

“So, you can look at a future of defending yourself from possible manslaughter charges where Mr. Rovia and Mr. Dixon would most definitely testify against you,” Dale summarized, “Or you can drop this whole thing and be hailed as a compassionate man in this community.”   
“What do you mean?”

“If you drop the charges against these two boys, you can pretend that you decided to be kind and let them go. People will see you as a good, kind hearted man instead of a cold hearted one. Letting two young boys who made a mistake go free could do wonders for your reputation with the people in this town.”

“What if the woman still dies?”

“I’ll keep my mouth shut,” Dale promised him, “The entire town believes your story already, don’t they? You drop the charges against Mr. Rovia and Mr. Dixon and this all goes away, leaving you looking like a hero.”

Dale could tell that Mr. Graves was debating his options in his head. Mr. Graves didn’t really want to go through a trial anyway and this would leave him looking better than prosecuting the boys ever would. He could milk the hell out of this if he let them go.

“Fine,” Mr. Graves relented, “I’ll drop the charges on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“I want written apologies from both boys stating that they were in the wrong for attacking me.”

Dale did his best not to let his annoyance show on his face. He really hated this man, but he had to continue to play nice.

“I’ll have them to you first thing tomorrow,” Dale promised him.

He knew that Mr. Graves was going to use the apology letters to make himself look better, but he hoped that the boys cared more about going free than inflating some asshole’s social status. Dale shook hands with the man and took his leave, heading straight for the police station where his client was waiting for him in an interrogation room.

* * *

“He wants us to what?” Paul gasped in disbelief upon hearing the condition put forth by Mr. Graves.

“I know it’s wrong to ask this of you, but you need to think about what’s best for you and Daryl,” Dale said trying to placate the boy.

“I thought you told me to never admit to something I didn’t do?” Paul challenged him.

“I know what I said, but this is a different situation,” Dale explained, “I told you not to ever admit to killing Will Dixon. There is no dispute on the fact that you pinned Mr. Graves to the ground in the restaurant.”

“That was his own fault. Daryl and I were defending Sasha, who he first slapped and then put in a coma, remember?” Paul hissed.

“I know,” Dale sighed, “But if you don’t do this, this case will go to trial and you and Daryl will likely go to jail.”

Paul slumped back into his chair, his arms still laying on the table only because the cops had refused to uncuff him except to use the bathroom.

“You and I both know you were acting chivalrously, but the town doesn’t see it like that. This is your best option, even if it stinks like horse shit,” Dale pleaded with Paul.

Paul hung his head as he thought more about what Daryl was saying. He’d been in this police station for over six hours now and he knew they had no intention of letting him go since they could legally hold him for 24 hours without officially charging him. He was also acutely aware that Daryl was in the hospital and Paul desperately wanted to see him. The last time Paul had seen him, he was bleeding heavily and just barely conscious.

“If I write mine now and give it to you, will they release me?” Paul asked looking across the table at Dale.

“I’ll have to call Mr. Graves and ask him to call and drop the charges against you, but they’ll have to release you the second he drops the case.”

Paul nodded and reluctantly agreed, “Fine. I’ll do it.”

* * *

Paul glared at Office Walsh as he roughly uncuffed him. Walsh had tried to reason with his captain about keeping Paul for the murder charge, but since they all knew they couldn’t get a conviction, the request was denied. Paul could see the red rings around his wrists from where the cuffs had cut into his skin and rubbed them absentmindedly.

He’d finished his apology fairly quickly and all but shoved it at Dale. Thankfully Mr. Graves had been happy with his apology and dropped the charges against him. He hadn’t dropped the ones against Daryl yet though because he didn’t have his apology. Paul knew it was going to be a tough battle to get Daryl to agree to apologize to the man and he really wasn’t looking forward to that conversation.

Paul made a beeline for the door of the station, bursting through the front door with little regard for how it would slam shut behind him. When he didn’t hear the telltale slam, however, he turned around to see that Officer Walsh had followed him outside. He swallowed nervously and tried to discreetly move into a defensive position.

“You got off easy this time faggot,” Walsh spat at him, “But you best believe if I ever have to arrest you again, you won’t get out of it.”

“Shane!” came a voice from behind Walsh.

Paul looked back over his shoulder to see another cop standing in the doorway. He looked angry and annoyed, but his gaze wasn’t directed at Paul like he’d assumed it would be. It was instead pointed at Walsh who was still glaring daggers at him.

“Leave the kid alone,” the cop called out.

Shane ran his tongue over his top teeth in annoyance, but turned away and went back towards the station. Paul breathed out a sigh of relief, but didn’t stick around to thank the man. He bolted away from the station in the direction of the hospital, his only train of thought about getting to Daryl.

* * *

Paul did his best to walk calmly to Daryl’s hospital room, but he was still really speed walking. He didn’t even bother to knock when he reached the room since he assumed nobody would be visiting Daryl and able to get the door.

“Daryl...” Paul started, but stopped short when he saw who was sitting next to the bed.

He just about jumped out of his skin when his eyes landed on the cop sitting next to Daryl’s bed. He’d totally forgotten that they’d sent someone to keep Daryl from running away.

“Paul!” Daryl exclaimed in excitement, but he was quickly cut off by the cop.

“What are you doing here?” he demanded, glaring at Paul.

“Mr. Graves dropped the assault charges against me,” Paul explained coolly.

The cop squinted his eyes, suspicious of Paul’s words, “Why?”

“We made a deal. Call your commander if you don’t believe me,” Paul shrugged.

The cop got up and made his way over to the side of the room to do just that, clearing the way for Paul to get to Daryl. Paul just about ran over to the side of the bed to embrace his boyfriend. He heard him grunt in pain and he immediately let go.

“Sorry!” Paul said releasing Daryl from his vice grip.

“It’s fine,” Daryl winced.

Paul rolled his eyes, but didn’t argue.

“How are you feeling?” Paul asked taking Daryl’s hand.

He assumed that the cop already knew since the entire station did, so he didn’t mind showing a little affection. He didn’t care what some homophobic asshole would say right now.

“Like I got hit by a car,” he admitted, giving Paul’s hand a squeeze, “Why’d he drop the charges?”

Paul grimaced, “Dale, our state assigned lawyer for the case, struck a deal with the man to get him to drop the charges.”

“What kind of deal?”

“I had to apologize to him for attacking him in a written letter,” Paul revealed, bracing himself for Daryl’s reaction.

“You what?!?” Daryl hissed, “How could you ever think about justifying what that man did, let alone apologize to him?”

“It’s our best option,” Paul said trying to explain himself, “There’s no doubt that I’d be convicted and locked up for aggravated assault if I didn’t agree to meet his demands. The same goes for you.”

“No,” Daryl stated firmly, “I refuse to apologize to that bastard. He got what was coming to him.”

“Daryl...”

“Paul, no! I will not do that. I’d be betraying Sasha if I did.”

Paul sighed deeply, he’d known ahead of time that this was going to be an uphill battle with his boyfriend and he just didn’t have the energy to argue. He didn’t, however, want Daryl to be dragged off to the police station tomorrow when the hospital would likely release him. A knock on the door tore his attention away from Daryl and watched as Dale entered.

“Hi, you must be Daryl Dixon,” Dale greeted him, “I”m Dale Horvath, your...”

“My lawyer, I know,” Daryl snapped at him, “Paul already told be about your dumb ass idea. My answer’s no.”

Dale looked over at him sadly, but turned to the cop instead.

“Sir, if you could please leave the room. I can assure you I won’t let Daryl run off,” Dale asked the cop.

The cop nodded, threw one last look of disgust over at the two teens, and left. Dale caught the look and was confused, but ignored it, deeming it unimportant. Dale made his way over to the chairs next to Daryl’s bed and sat down. He could read his client’s anger just from the way his body was tensed and his face was set.

“I know you don’t like it, but Paul’s right if he told you it’s your only option to avoid jail time,” Dale spoke calmly, not trying to piss the kid off anymore than he already was.

“I don’t care,” Daryl replied stubbornly.

“You should care,” Dale challenged him, “You could spend more than the next couple years in prison if you don’t do this.”

“I was defending a friend from a racist piece of shit. I did nothing wrong.”

Dale sighed deeply, “Maybe in good mens’ eyes you did nothing wrong, but according to the laws of our country, you did. At least, that’s how the court is most likely going to view it. By stroking this man’s ego just a little, you can keep from having jail time on your permanent record.”

Daryl just glared at him, not responding.

“Don’t you realize how hard it will be for you to get a good job as a convicted felon?” Dale asked, “Don’t you realize that you’d have to spend years away from your friends and family? Would Sasha prefer for you to stay set in your statement out of pride, or stay on the outside of the prison walls with her?”

Dale could see Daryl’s shoulders starting to slump back against the bed as he listened to what was being said. Daryl knew that Sasha wouldn’t want him going to jail for her, no matter how much Mr. Graves had deserved to be knocked around.

“Paul’s already written and signed his,” Dale reminded Daryl, “He decided he’d rather spend the next couple years with his friends than sitting in prison because he knows we won’t win the trial. This town’s point of view is already poisoned against you because of the news article. I’m telling you Daryl, the permanent mark on your record isn’t worth it.”

Paul could tell that Daryl was becoming increasingly upset as he realized that submitting to this unfair condition was his only option. He hated that some white man like Mr. Graves could get away with whatever he wanted while people like Sasha had to accept being marginalized and abused in order to avoid jail time due to how the system was rigged. Daryl could go to court and argue that he was defending her from a racist attack and the jurors would likely just shrug it off because they wouldn’t see anything out of the ordinary about it.

“Fine,” Daryl whispered defeated, “I’ll sign it. Paul better write it though since I’m not too good with words.”

Dale nodded, silently thanking god that Daryl had come around on the idea. He gave Paul a notebook and leaned back into his chair to wait for it to be done. Paul started writing out another apology and when it was finished Daryl signed his name to it. Dale thanked them and left to go call Mr. Graves to drop the charges against Daryl.

“I’m sorry it had to happen like this,” Dale tried just as he was about to leave.

“Get out,” Daryl snapped at him.

Dale knew the anger was only partially directed at him, but he quickly took his leave anyway. He felt bad about how everything had turned out, but he was still happy that the two boys weren’t going to be going to jail over it. He’d much rather have them out of prison and hating him, than sitting behind bars and thanking him for trying his best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated! <3


	11. Thanksgiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Paul and Daryl celebrate Thanksgiving with Sasha and her family.

It’s been nearly a month since the whole mess with the police, Will Dixon, and Mr. Graves. Since he was 18, Daryl was allowed to live on his own in his dad’s old trailer as long as he was able to make the monthly bill payments. Daryl, unlike his father, actually kept up with the payments by hunting more and making sure to conserve electricity. Paul had wanted to try and get permission from the state to be an emancipated minor, but with their relationship with law enforcement in this town, it probably wasn’t going to happen. So despite Daryl having a place for Paul to live, he still had to go back to the group home every day.

Sasha had woken up just a few days after their conversation with Dale in the hospital. Despite just waking up from a coma, the second she’d seen Daryl’s bandaged torso she started worrying about him. Daryl had cried when he told her about what he’d done to avoid going to jail. Paul had been right about her not being mad at either of them for protecting themselves, but Daryl was still so ashamed for giving into Mr. Graves’ demands.

Mr. Graves had the paper print their apologies in the paper the next day, wasting no time in twisting the story even more to make himself look like the good guy. The whole town was eating his bullshit right up too, calling him compassionate and a “true man of faith.” The whole thing made Paul sick, but he kept his mouth shut not wanting to piss anyone off and end up back at square one. There were people, of course, who still wanted him and Daryl prosecuted for assault, but they just did their best to ignore them.

Their plan for the rest of the school year was to keep their heads down and not give the police another excuse to come after them. Every once in a while, Paul would see Officer Walsh at the grocery store while he was working the registers, but they hadn’t spoken since his interrogation. Walsh would glare at him, but never approached. Paul would even see him wait in a longer checkout line just so he didn’t have to come into contact with him. Paul assumed it was because he’s gay, but he was honestly just glad that Walsh was keeping his distance no matter what his reasoning was.

Daryl and Paul spent many weekend nights dreaming about their future away from this place, somewhere they could be more open with their relationship. They would lie in Daryl’s bed after making love and just talk about where they might want to go and what they were going to do. It was nice to have a place other than the woods where they could be together as boyfriends. The dried blood stains in the hall were the only physical reminders left in the house of what had happened a month before. Daryl had tried so hard to get the blood stains out, but it was useless because of how long it had been left there so he gave up. They wouldn’t be staying here forever anyway.

* * *

“How about New York?” Paul offered, “I stayed in a foster home there once for about two weeks.”

Paul was snuggled up against Daryl’s naked form under the covers of his bed basking in the afterglow brought on by mind blowing sex.

“Where in New York?” Daryl asked softly, his fingers trailing innocently up Paul’s bare side.

Paul shivered at the touch, “I’m not sure, Buffalo was nice. I’m not sure how well you’d do there in the winter though.”

“How cold does it get?”

“Low teens and negatives are a common thing,” Paul admitted.

Daryl shivered at the thought, “Maybe not New York then.”

Paul laughed softly, “What’s the coldest it’s ever been here?”

“It normally stays about the thirties even at night,” Daryl explained, “You’ll probably be able to go the whole winter without wearing anything more than a light jacket.”

Paul nodded, “I am used to it being in the teens and lower during the winter.”

“You’re nuts,” Daryl mumbled burying his nose in his boyfriend’s neck.

Paul chuckled, “I’m just more resistant to cold. I’m not sure I’d survive a Georgian summer though.”

“It doesn’t get that hot,” he argued.

“Babe, I consider the lower 80's to be too hot.”

Daryl snorted, “You’re right. You wouldn’t survive the summer.”

Paul ran his fingers through Daryl’s hair thinking about where they could move to when the graduated. He knew they wanted to go north, but he wasn’t sure how far north Daryl would be comfortable going. There was also travel time and cost of living they had to worry about. Small towns were more likely to have issues with their relationship, but bigger cities were too expensive. Paul sighed and closed his eyes. Maybe he’d research LGBT friendly towns at the library later this week.

“Sasha invited us to have Thanksgiving at her place next week,” Daryl said breaking the comfortable silence.

“That’s nice of her,” Paul gulped, “I know I’ve met her before, but the idea of having Thanksgiving dinner with her is about the closest thing to a ‘meet the parents’ that I’m ever going to get with you.”

Daryl chuckled, “She already likes you, Paul. If she didn’t she’d have already given you a piece of her mind.”

“I know, but still,” Paul whispered, “It’s not like I have a lot of practice with family gatherings. Should I bring something?”

“No, silly,” Daryl snorted, “You don’t have to bring an offering. You and I both know I’m the better cook anyway.”

Paul groaned, “I already apologized for nearly setting your kitchen on fire. Can you please let it go?”

Daryl lifted his head up to stare down at his boyfriend.

“Never,” he whispered before attacking Paul’s lips with his own.

* * *

Paul shifted uncomfortably on the steps of Sasha’s home. He knows that his anxiety is unnecessary, but he couldn’t help it. This was his first official Thanksgiving not help by some group home or after school program. He was in the nicest clothes he owned and holding a batch of cookies that Daryl had baked in his hands. He hadn’t knocked on the door yet not wanting to be alone when the door opened. He glanced back over his shoulder again, impatiently waiting for Daryl to get Maia’s present from the backseat of Will’s rusted red pickup truck. Daryl had inherited it along with the house.

They still hadn’t really talked about how Paul had shot his father outside Daryl telling him he didn’t care. Paul had been worried that Daryl would hate him for doing it because despite all the abuse, he was still Daryl’s dad. When he’d asked Daryl about it, he’d just kissed him and told him it was alright. Paul never told Daryl, but sometimes he would have nightmares about pulling that trigger and missing, the bullet hitting Daryl instead. The first time he’d dreamed it, he woke up screaming in his bed at the group home, his roommate glaring down at him. He’d simply told him to shut up and went back to sleep.

“You ready to go inside?” Daryl asked materializing beside him, causing him to jump.

Daryl furrowed his eyebrows at his reaction, “Are you good?”

Paul nodded, swallowing hard, “Yeah, I’m just nervous.”

Daryl blinked, “We’ve been over this, babe. They already know you and like you.”

“It’s not just that,” Paul admitted, “This is my first real Thanksgiving dinner and I’m scared I’m going to mess it up or something.”

Daryl grasped his hand firmly in his, “It’s just dinner, Paul. Stop thinking about it in the context of the holiday. It’s just dinner with our closest friends.”

“Your family,” Paul mumbled and Daryl rolled his eyes.

“It’ll be fine, I promise,” Daryl assured them, “They’re not going to suddenly decide that they hate you.”

“Plenty of other people have,” Paul snapped.

Daryl sighed heavily, “Well, those people were assholes. Sasha and her family, however, are good people.”

Paul looked up at Daryl, “I know. Some scars just take longer to heal.”

Daryl nodded, “Let’s go inside. We look ridiculous standing out here.”

Daryl lifted his hand and knocked on the door sending Paul’s heart into his throat. There was a couple beats of silence before the door was swinging open to reveal Sasha wearing an apron and holding Maia. The child squealed upon seeing Daryl and promptly started reaching for him, almost making her mother drop her. Daryl didn’t hesitate to put the bag he was holding down and accept the small girl into his arms, hugging her close.

“Uncle Daryl!” Maia cheered throwing her arms around his neck.

“Hey,” Daryl chuckled positioning her on his hip.

Paul couldn’t help but stare at Daryl holding her and wonder what it might be like for them to have children of their own. Hell, they’ve only been dating a few months and he was already picturing them starting a family together. Sasha led them inside picking up Maia’s present. It wasn’t her birthday or anything, Daryl had just seen it and thought Maia would like it.

Paul set the cookies down on the dining room table as he watched Daryl give the girl her gift. She happily tore through the paper scattering it all around the floor before pulling out a My Little Pony play set complete with two new ponies that she didn’t have yet. She grabbed the box and begged Daryl to open it for her.

Chuckling, he pulled out his favorite pocket knife and started cutting away the plastic while Maia watched. Soon enough he had the ponies and the new play set free from the wrapping. Maia grabbed them and Daryl’s hand, dragging him back to her room to introduce the new toys to her ever growing collection. While this was cute, it did effectively leave Paul alone with Sasha. He could kick himself for how anxious he was letting himself be, but Sasha and Bob really were like parents to Daryl and they were going to tell them about their plans to leave town tonight.

“How have you been, Paul?” Sasha asked him, poking her head out from the kitchen.

“Good,” was all he could think of to say back.

Sasha nodded, “I could use some help in the kitchen, if you’re up for it?”

“Of course,” Paul agreed and followed her back into the kitchen.

He could smell the turkey roasting in the oven and see the collard greens and potatoes cooking on the stove. Cranberry sauce, carrots, and golden bread rolls sat on the counter waiting for the rest of the food to be done. In the dining room next to the kitchen, Bob was busy setting the table for dinner glaring at two different styles of forks and trying to figure out which one went where.

“What do you need me to do?” he asked her washing his hands.

“The potatoes should be done if you want to drain them for me.”

Paul nodded and did as she said using the lid of the pot to drain all of the water into the sink. Setting the pot down on a coaster, Sasha came over and added salt, pepper, milk, and butter to the potatoes along with a few other ingredients that Paul didn’t recognize.

“Mash those up for me, would you?” she asked hanging him the potato masher.

“Sure,” he said giving her a half smile.

He took the masher from her and started the process of turning the cut up potatoes into a mash. He could feel Sasha’s eyes on him as she took the collared greens off the stove and put them to the side.

“Why are you so nervous?” she asked him out of the blue.

Paul sighed, “It’s my first Thanksgiving and I’m afraid to mess it up. I don’t know the traditions or even how to act at a fancy dinner.”

Sasha snorted behind him, “Fancy? Paul, have you met your boyfriend? Daryl doesn’t do fancy, ever. This is just a normal dinner. The only difference is that today is called something more than Thursday.”

Paul gave her a small smile, “I know I shouldn’t be anxious, but I can’t seem to help it.”

“It’s fine to feel nervous about something you’ve never done before,” Sasha assured him, “but I promise you there won’t be any surprises during dinner.”

“Thanks,” Paul said, some of his nerves settling a bit.

Sasha seemed to have a calming effect on him every time they spoke. It was weird, yet comforting at the same time. Daryl reappeared holding Maia who had one of her new ponies in her hands.

“Wow, Sasha,” Daryl said entering the kitchen, “It smells great in here.”

“Turkey should be done in about five minutes and then once Bob carves it we’ll be ready to eat,” she informed him.

“But I’m hungry now,” Maia complained staring longingly at the mashed potatoes Paul was making.

Sasha raised her eyebrow at her daughter, “Is that how we’re supposed to behave?”

Maia crossed her arms and pouted against Daryl’s chest, “No.”

“Good girl,” Sasha said smiling at her daughter, “Would you like to try them?”

The little girl’s eyes lit up and she grinned, “Yes!”

“Yes what?”

“Yes please,” she said squirming in Daryl’s arms.

Sasha took the girl from him and let her have a spoonful of the potatoes to placate her for the last few minutes before dinner was served. Daryl meanwhile pulled Paul away from the counter.

“How are you feeling?” he asked glancing over at Sasha.

“Good,” Paul assured him, “Sasha and I talked about it a bit.”

Daryl nodded and kiss his boyfriend, but kept it chaste since they weren’t alone. He caught Sasha eye as they parted and he blushed. They didn’t kiss in front of them often and it still made him blush when Sasha gave him that soft look. He could tell she was happy for him that he’d found Paul and was reminded of it every time he saw that look on her face. He was not looking forward to breaking the news to her that he’d be leaving town in a few months.

Part of him wanted to ask them to come with him, but he couldn’t ask them to do that. Sasha mother and Maia’s grandma lived here along with the rest of her extended family. He couldn’t possibly expect her to leave all of them behind just for him and Paul. No, that was an adventure he and Paul would be taking all on their own. He’d miss Sasha, Bob, and little Maia, but he’d visit when he could and call when he can’t.

* * *

Dinner was going smoothly and all of Paul’s previous anxiety had dissipated. He’d been so afraid about coming off as awkward and out of place, but he didn’t feel displaced at all. The air of the room felt comfortable as Daryl and his chosen family laughed and talked about anything and everything. Maia kept bugging her mother for more mashed potatoes while Daryl told Bob about his work on his brother’s bike. It felt like the family he’d never had, but always wanted. They’d all long since finished their dinner and dessert, but they stayed there just talking.

It wasn’t until Maia started getting too fidgety that they decided to move to the living room where she could play with her toys. Daryl helped Sasha clean up despite her protests while Paul made his way into the living room with Maia. The girl ran over to him and tugged on his jeans.

“Come play with me?” she begged him, looking up at him with the cutest puppy eyes he’d ever seen.

Paul let her drag him over to her chest of toys where she pulled out a couple of dolls to go with the pony she’d had with her the entirety of dinner. She stood on her tiptoes to hand him one of the dolls and Paul snorted in amusement when he saw it. It was a normal ken doll, but he had a Lego crossbow taped to his hand and his Hawaiian shirt had the sleeves cut off. His hair had also been colored brown with a marker.

“Who’s this?” Paul asked her sitting down next to her.

“That’s uncle Daryl,” she stated simply, “and this is you.”

Paul cocked an eyebrow as she passed him a ken doll dressed in a ninja outfit.

“Daryl told me you know karate,” she explained, “so that makes you a ninja.”

Paul smiled down at the small girl, “If you say so.”

“Last week I held a wedding for them and all the dolls went,” she revealed, “It was a lot of fun.”

Paul’s eye blew wide at what she was telling him. He couldn’t believe that she’d actually held a wedding for their “characters.”

“When are you and Daryl going to have one for real? And can I be the flower girl?” she asked innocently looking up at him.

Paul honestly couldn’t think about what to say to her. He’d thought about his future with Daryl a lot, but he’d never imagined a wedding. How could he bring himself to explain that it was illegal for him and Daryl to get married? She would be crushed and he didn’t want to upset her when she was having so much fun telling him about her dolls.

Paul swallowed the lump in his throat and tried desperately to piece something together that she would understand.

“That won’t happen for a long while yet, we haven’t been together that long,” Paul explained.

Confusion spread across her face, “But you love each other?”

“Yes, we do,” he assured her, “but people don’t normally get married after only three months of dating.”

“Well, when you do get married, I can still be the flower girl, right?” she asked hopefully.

“Of course,” he assured Maia, smiling down at her, “I can’t think of anyone better suited for the job.”

The girl smiled happily up at him before going back to telling him all about her dolls. Paul did his best to pay attention, but now images of what a wedding between him and Daryl might look like were invading his mind. He saw Daryl in a dark suit while he himself was in a white one, just for the aesthetic of it. He saw Sasha walking him down the aisle behind Maia who was dressed in a frilly blue dress and tossing flower petals haphazardly down the aisle. It was outside under the spring sun and it was just him, Daryl, and Sasha’s family.

He wondered what it would be like to declare his love for Daryl so publicly like that. To wear a gold ring on his finger everyday and tell people about his husband, not just his boyfriend. He pictured them hiking through the sunny woods of Yellowstone park on their honeymoon and making love under the stars. He saw them walking hand in hand down the open streets of some town, proudly displaying their loved for all the world to see.

He was pulled from those thoughts by Daryl walking into the room with Sasha close behind him. Daryl walked over to sit on the couch next to where he was sitting on the floor.

“Having fun?” Daryl asked him, taking a sip of Sasha’s homemade apple cider.

“Yeah,” Paul replied, “Maia’s been telling me all about our wedding.”

Daryl choked on his drink at his words, “Our  _ what?” _

Sasha chuckled at his reaction, “She held a wedding between your dolls last week. She asked me to play wedding music on our record player for it.”

Daryl blushed a dark crimson as she spoke. He’d been happy when Maia had just accepted that he and Paul were together romantically without question, but he’d never expected her to hold a fake wedding for her dolls because of it.

“I think it’s adorable,” Paul admitted leaning his head against Daryl’s thigh, “She’s already called dibs on being our flower girl.”

“Maia, we’ve only been together for three months,” Daryl said looking down at the girl as she walked over to stand at his feet.

She shrugged, “Time doesn’t seem to be an issue for Barbie. She always marries her prince at the end of the movie.”

Daryl chuckled at her innocence, “Well, real life moves a little slower than a Barbie movie.”

“Why?” she complained, crossing her arms, “If you wait too long I’ll be all grown and then I can’t be the flower girl.”

Daryl rolled his eyes and scooped her up onto his lap.

“There’s no age limit attached to being a flower girl,” he promised her, “No matter when it happens, the job’s always going to be yours.”

Satisfied by his answer she jumped off his lap and went back to playing with her dolls. Paul stayed on the ground and helped entertain the girl while they all talked about their lives.

* * *

It was nearing 9 pm when Sasha explained that it was Maia’s bedtime. The girl sleepily protested her mother, but caved as she was falling asleep against Paul’s chest. She hugged him and Daryl goodnight and let her mom carry her off to bed.

She returned shortly after and Daryl and Paul knew it was time for them to tell them that they were planning on leaving. Paul got up off the floor and sat down next to Daryl.

“Sasha, Bob,” Daryl began, “there’s something Paul and I need to tell you.”

“You’re not pregnant, are you?” Bob teased, smirking at the teens.

Daryl groaned and rolled his eyes, “Bob!”

“Alright, I’ll behave,” he relented, “What’s up?”

Daryl took a deep breath, “After graduation this spring, Paul and I have decided to leave.”

“We want to go somewhere that we can be out without having to worry about people attacking us for being ourselves,” Paul continued taking Daryl’s hand.

Sasha and Bob didn’t appear shocked by the news at all. They both just nodded their heads like they’d been expecting this announcement for some time.

“We both figured you’d be leaving once you were able to,” Sasha admitted, “I’ll miss you both, but I also want you to be able to live freely.”

Daryl felt a weight lift off his shoulders when she admitted to knowing that this was coming. He so badly didn’t want to hurt her by leaving.

“We’ll visit, of course,” Daryl promised, “I don’t think Maia would ever let me live down missing Christmas with my family.”

“You’d better visit,” she warned them, “I’m not about to deal with the temper tantrums Maia would throw if you weren’t here.”   
Daryl chuckled and nodded in agreement, “We promise to do our best to be here every year.”

Sasha smiled at his words and pulled him into a hug. She did the same to Paul, wanting him to know that he was just as much a part of this family as Daryl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated <3


	12. Christmas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it’s a few days after Christmas, but hopefully y’all have enough residual holiday cheer left to enjoy this chapter.
> 
> Shoutout to @Howdyep for giving me this idea!

Paul grumbled as he was once again poked by the tree he’d cut down in the forest outside Daryl’s house. He’d found out only last week, the week before Christmas, hat Daryl had never celebrated Christmas in his own house before. Sure he’d traded presents with Sasha and her family, but he’d never been aloud to decorate his own house. So this year Paul was going to fix all that.

Paul had gotten Sasha in on it, so Daryl was currently over at her house watching Maia. He thought Sasha and Bob were going out on a date, but they were actually on their way to Daryl’s house to help surprise him. They were bringing ornaments, tinsel, lights, and some other decorations for the tree and house. Paul already had the base for a real tree set up, but now he just needed to get this dumb tree into the house.

“It is Christmas Eve you dumb tree,” he yelled at it as it almost knocked him over on the threshold of Daryl’s house, “get in here!”

He pulled with all might and suddenly, whatever was catching on the back step gave away and he fell back on his ass with the tree in his lap.

“Next year I’m buying a fake tree,” he mumbled as he shifted the tree off of him.

He dragged the tree into the living room and positioned it to go into the base he’d set up earlier. He picked the tree up easily, it wasn’t super heavy, and started trying to get it to stand up in the base. A few more minutes of huffing and puffing and finally the tree was upright and secured. He stuck his tongue out at the tree just for good measure as he fixed a few of the branches.

A knock came on the door and Paul grinned hoping it was Sasha and Bob. He ran over to it and pulled it open.

“Hey,” he puffed, still panting slightly from his fight with the tree.

Sasha saw his messed up hair and scratched hands and chuckled, “Get into a fight with a tree?”

“Yes, but I did win,” he sighed, “It’s in the living room.”

He opened the door wider for her to bring in the giant box of ornaments she was holding. Bob came in behind her holding a couple of bags full of lights and tinsel.

“There’s a few more decorations in the car,” she said placing the box down on the couch, “Bob can you get them, please?”

“Of course,” he said before going back out to the car.

Sasha walked over to Paul and pulled him into a hug, which Paul gladly returned.

“How do you want to do this?” she asked him.

“We should probably start with the tree since that’s the most important part and then we can move onto other things.”

She nodded, agreeing with him. Bob came back inside holding a bin full of boxes.

“Sasha went a little overboard at the store in Atlanta last week. There’s a lot of stuff in here,” Bob said placing the bin down.

Inside were some special ornaments besides the normal baubles, a nice tree topper, a few small decorative reindeer, one or two decorative snowmen, and a blue and white bauble decorated pine wreath.

“Sasha this is all amazing,” he breathed, “I never thought we’d take it this far, but I love it.”

She smiled happily, “See Bob, it wasn’t a complete waste of money.”

He just rolled his eyes and shook his head. With everything inside, they got to work. They only has about an hour until Daryl was expecting them home to put Maia to bed. Bob wrapped the tree in lights while Paul and Sasha worked together to put hooks on all the new baubles. They were a combination of dark blue, light blue, and silver to match the wreath.

Once the lights were on, the all hung the baubles on the tree along with the special ornaments. There was a crossbow for Daryl, a princess for Maia, and a ninja star for Paul. He’d laughed so hard when he saw the star remembering Maia telling him how him knowing karate made him a ninja. Those three ornaments went front and center on the tree.

While Bob put the wreath on the door using a long black metal wreath hanger, Paul and Sasha wrapped the tree in silver tinsel. The last thing they did was put the star on top. It looked like it was wrapped in twigs, which was perfectly Daryl’s style. She then plugged the lights into the outlet on the wall and everyone gasped when the tree’s white lights came on. The tree was absolutely beautiful. Paul grinned so wide it hurt upon seeing it all lit up.

They then moved onto the decorative figurines, placing the reindeer on an old liquor shelf and the snowmen on the kitchen counter. Paul grinned happily seeing the once sad house decorated for the holiday. He glanced at the clock and saw that they’d made it with time to spare.

“It all looks amazing Paul,” Sasha smiled, “He’s going to love it when he gets home.”

“I hope so,” Paul replied, “He didn’t seem to have any interest in decorating when I asked him about it.”

“I think it’s just because he’s never done something like this before,” she assured him, “Maybe next year he’ll be one helping you decorate.”

“I hope so,” he said running his fingers across one of the tree’s branches.

He bid them goodbye and they left to relieve Daryl so that he could come home and see what they’d done for him. Paul hurried to the back of the house where he’d hidden the presents from Sasha and Bob since he didn’t have theirs wrapped yet. He grabbed the one he got for Daryl and placed it under the tree. He’d have Daryl help him wrap the other ones later since he didn’t actually own any wrapping paper. He’d used newspaper to wrap Daryl’s gift since he knew he wouldn’t care. There was a ribbon that he’d stolen on it from his roommate's christmas wrapping collection.

He pulled on the Santa hat he’d bought and sat down on the couch to wait for Daryl. It felt like forever until the door opened and Daryl came in.

“What’s with the wreath...” he paused upon seeing the inside of his house.

“Surprise!” Paul cheered throwing his arms up, “Do you like it?”

“Yeah,” he breathed, taking it all in, “I’m just shocked. When did you do all this? And where’d you get everything?”

“Oh, Sasha and Bob bought everything but the tree. I got that from your backyard,” Paul explained, grinning from ear to ear, “They were just here helping me decorate.”

“No, they were out on a date...” he trailed off again seeing Paul’s sheepish grin, “They were in on this, weren’t they. You used Maia to get me out of my house, didn’t you?”

Paul nodded, walking over to kiss Daryl hello. He happily accepted the kiss and pulled Paul closer.

“I like the hat,” Daryl said, kissing Paul again.

“Good,” he whispered, “maybe after you open your present you can fuck me in it.”

Daryl swallowed hard, “I’ve never cared much about Christmas before, but I’m definitely interested now.”

Paul chuckled as Daryl leaned in to kiss him again while his hand slipped under Paul’s shirt. Paul smiled into the kiss as he felt Daryl’s hand run up his back.

“Not just yet. You have to open your Christmas present,” Paul scolded him, pulling away from the kiss.

“But I left yours at Sasha’s since we’re going there tomorrow morning,” Daryl sighed sadly.

“That’s okay babe. I don’t need anything right now. I have you.”

Daryl blushed deeply as he toed off his boot, but allowed Paul to drag him over to the tree. Paul pulled him to the ground so that were sitting right next to it. Paul picked up the present and held it out to Daryl. He glanced up at Paul before taking it, but when he did, he didn’t hesitate to start opening it.

Inside was a couple of framed pictures. The first one was of Daryl and Maia. She’s sitting on his lap and they’re both laughing at something. The second one was of Daryl and Sasha and her family. It was taken in front of their Christmas tree last year, before he’d met Daryl. The third one was of him and Daryl. They were asleep on Sasha’s couch, holding each other in their arms. It was one of Paul’s favorite pictures.

“Thank you, Paul,” he whispered staring down at the photos, “I love them.”

Paul kissed his cheek in response. Daryl stood up and placed them on the coffee table behind them. He turned back to Paul, a mischievous grin on his face.

“What?” Paul asked, leaning back and spreading his legs suggestively, using his arms as support.

Daryl didn’t say anything, he just grabbed the pillows and lube, hidden under one of the cushions, from the couch before coming back down to the floor in front of Paul and kissing him. He placed one of the pillows behind Paul and slowly pushed him back so that his head was laying on the pillow, causing him to stare up at the lit tree above him. Soon Daryl entered his view, the lights shining around his head.

“Going to make love to me under the Christmas tree? Romantic,” Paul teased his boyfriend.

“Yep,” Daryl said and kissed him, coming to rest in between Paul’s legs.

Paul was glad Daryl’s living room was carpeted now. It wasn’t pretty carpet, but it added some cushion beneath his shoulders. He already knew, however, that he should keep his shirt on, unbuttoned but on, to not end up with any rugburn. Last time they’d had sex on the floor his shoulders had been raw for weeks.

Daryl nugged his ass up so that he could slip the other pillow under him. Knowing what they both wanted, Daryl wasted no time in unbuckling Paul’s belt and pulling his jeans off of him. Paul moaned as he felt Daryl’s mouth on his clothed dick, mouthing him through the fabric of his underwear. They’d gotten to know each other so well over the past two months that they could communicate without even talking in situations like this.

Daryl pulled his underwear down and off, exposing his hardening cock to the cool air. Paul groaned as he felt Daryl’s tongue run up the underside of his cock. Daryl took Paul into his mouth and sucked at the tip before deep throating him. Paul gasped out in shock as his entire length was swallowed up by the wet heat of his boyfriend’s mouth. He threaded his hands through Daryl’s hair as he bobbed his head on his cock.

Paul heard the opening of a bottle and nearly jumped in surprise when Daryl’s wet finger prodded between his ass cheeks. Daryl’s ability to multitask never ceases to amaze him. Paul moaned in encouragement as he felt Daryl’s finger press gently against his pucker.

“Please baby,” Paul managed to moan when Daryl kept teasing him with his finger.

Finally, he felt his boyfriend push his finger inside. The double stimulation from having his cock sucked and a finger in his ass was driving him crazy. Daryl quickly progressed to two fingers knowing from experience that Paul was still slightly open from this morning. He pushed them in to the knuckled and curled them to probe his prostate.

Paul gasped, “Babe, if you don’t stop, I’m going to cum.”

Daryl reluctantly pulled off his cock and grinned devilishly. He loved seeing Paul’s face turn red as he squirmed in pleasure under him. It made him wonder what it felt like to be the one on the bottom. He’d been thinking about it more and more, but tonight wasn’t the night to bring it up. He just wanted to enjoy this moment with Paul and not bring up anything they’d have to stop and actually talk about.

Daryl leaned up and away from Paul, pulling his fingers from his ass. Paul whined at the feeling of being left empty.

“Hold on,” Daryl snorted, “Let me get undressed. Unbutton your shirt.”

Daryl made quick work of discarding his t-shirt while Paul started unbuttoning the flannel he’d stolen from Daryl’s closet. Daryl pulled off his jeans and underwear, tossing them to the side not caring where they landed. He knee walked back over to his boyfriend, appreciating the sight of him laid out under the tree. His position made it seem like he was his gift instead of the pictures, which would’ve made him equally happy.

He leaned down over Paul to kiss him, his boyfriend’s hands running up his chest and wrapping around his neck. He broke the kiss to pour more lube into his hand to cover his cock before leaning back over Paul. Paul bit his lip when he felt Daryl’s hard cock push between his ass cheeks to tease his hole.

“Come on babe,” Paul groaned, “Fuck me already.”

Daryl chuckled at his boyfriend’s impatience, but relented since it was Christmas Eve. He used his hand to guide himself into his boyfriend, groaned deeply at the feeling. Paul let out a long, drawn out moan as Daryl pushed forward, filling him. As always, once he was all the way in, Daryl paused to let Paul adjust to him.

“Please move,” Paul begged him, his nails biting into the skin on his shoulders.

Now having his boyfriend’s permission to move, Daryl pulled out until only the tip was left inside before pushing in again. He angled himself to hit Paul’s prostate head on with every thrust, but he kept the pace slow, yet firm. He wanted not to just fuck Paul, but to make love to him.

For once, Paul was enjoying the slow pace. It wasn’t often that they did something so soft and caring as this. They both preferred it a bit more rough and fast, but tonight he decided be liked this. It felt more intimate than normal with the Christmas lights dancing in his vision as Daryl made love to him. He wrapped his legs around Daryl’s waist and pulled him against him even more, pushing Daryl’s cock even deeper.

They kept this pace the whole time, often kissing and panting into each other's mouths. Paul sucked a hickey onto Daryl’s neck and he returned the favor by leaving a few on Paul’s collarbone. Paul threaded his fingers through Daryl’s hair as he pushed back against him on every thrust. The santa hat fell off his head at some point, but neither of them really noticed it.

Eventually, their pace sped up a little as they neared their ends. Paul gripped Daryl’s back and yelled out his name as be came between them, his cum painting his stomach. Paul moaned and let his head fall back against the pillow as his orgasm washed over him. Daryl followed shortly after him, burying himself deep inside his boyfriend as he came.

Once he’d come down from his orgasmic high, he carefully pulled out of Paul who whined at the loss. Daryl kissed him briefly before grabbing his shirt to clean them both up, gently wiping away the cum on Paul’s stomach.

“Come on, we should go to bed,” Daryl whispered to his boyfriend who looked ready to fall asleep there on the floor.

Paul nodded and let Daryl help him up. They held hands as they made their way to Daryl’s bedroom. They both pulled on some fresh underwear and sweatpants before climbing into bed. Paul had long ago moved some of his clothes into Daryl’s house so that he’d have some changes of clothing when he was here. If he wasn’t required to be at the group home during the week, he’d have already moved in here.

“Merry Christmas, Daryl,” Paul mumbled half asleep as he curled up against his boyfriend’s chest.

“Merry Christmas, babe,” he replied, kissing his forehead before falling asleep.


End file.
